Formative Studios in Architecture Design: Pedagogy Based on the Syntax

Like any other language, the language of architecture also has a basic grammar which has to be learnt and imbibed. This paper looks at some of the Formative Studios in Architecture Design Education that emphasise on the grammar (syntax) of the language of architecture. It makes a case for the focus on teaching the language of architecture so that the student becomes sufficiently competent to use it for expressing and creating any kind of space. The need to decode some accepted methodologies, beliefs and signs are also important to conceive out-of the-box solutions. The paper looks at design pedagogy in studios through various exercises that are not problem-solving in nature but passively inculcate in a student the basic vocabulary of design of space.