US/AH 230 - Roman Architecture & Urban Design

The course is a survey of the architecture and the urban history of the city of Rome, from the early Renaissance to contemporary Rome. Rome is an exceptional city in that it represents more than 2700 years of uninterrupted history, reflected in its architecture. Through a close examination of the history of buildings, gathering places and routes, students will gain an understanding of the key historical and cultural issues that informed urban developments throughout the Renaissance, the Baroque and the 19th and 20th centuries. Religious, artistic and political ideologies have in turn often shaped Western architecture and urban form. Interrelationships will be discussed between rituality, cultural and political changes and their counterparts in architecture and urban design, as well as the importance of the "multi- layered-ness" of each of these significant periods. The course is taught both in the classroom and on-site.