From the 20th to the 29th of April 2024, Professor XIAO Yiqiang, Associate Professors: LYU Yao, and YIN Shi from the School of Architecture led a group of 14 undergraduate students from the "Architectural Design (V and VI) - Specialized Direction of Green Buildings" class on an architectural excursion and academic visit to Germany.
This visit was organized into three parts. Initially, from April 20th to 22nd, we embarked on an architectural excursion of green architecture and urban renewal in the Ruhr Industrial Park, Germany. Following this, from April 23rd to 26th, we participated in an architectural design workshop and academic exchanges at the Technical University of Darmstadt (TUDA). Finally, from April 27th to 29th, we visited the Technical University of Berlin campus and conducted a field trip of green buildings in Berlin.
Video for this visit
Part I: Ruhr area
During our visit to the Ruhr area, known as the "heart of German industry", we had the opportunity to observe numerous classic green building and urban renewal projects in Düsseldorf, Duisburg, and Essen. This included the Küppersmühle Museum, Lehmbruck Museum, North Duisburg Landscape Park, K21 Art Museum, Folkwang Museum, and the Zollverein Coal Mine Industrial Complex.
Küppersmühle Museum, Duisburg
Folkwang Museum, Essen
Part II: Workshop
On the 23rd, we initiated the design workshop at TUDA and engaged in academic exchanges with several faculty members from their School of Architecture. Prof. Annette Rudolph-Cleff, the chair of the Department of Urban Design and Development, arranged a spring camp focused on "Resilience and Sustainable Design". Ten TUDA students were recruited to participate in the workshop.
The workshop was themed "Mission Quartermaster", where Chinese and German students collaborated to formulate innovative urban resilience design proposals. These concepts were aimed at enhancing public spaces and street furniture in a city of their preference. Dr. Joachim Schulze, a faculty member, outlined the "emergenCITY" research project and the eHUB building which was the winner of the 2009 Solar Decathlon in Washington, D.C., USA.
Prof. Annette Rudolph-Cleff introducing this workshop
Visiting eHUB project in the campus of TUDA
Prof. Annette Rudolph-Cleff guiding students to visit the Darmstädter Künstlerkolonie Mathildenhöhe
Throughout the workshop, Prof. Felix Wächter, the Dean of the Faculty of Architecture, provided the students with insights into the Faculty and reflected on several of his sustainable architecture projects based on wood architecture. Prof. Elke Reichel, the Vice Dean of the School of Architecture, showcased multiple projects that employed recycled building materials.
Our group was received by TUDA's International Exchange Office where Dr. Jana Freihöfer briefed us on the oversea exchange policy of the Technical University of Darmstadt and welcomed the Chinese students to pursue further education in Germany, directly from the heart of the university in Darmstadt.
Prof. Felix Wächter
Dr. Jana Freihöfer welcoming students from SCUT to visit TUDA
In the ensuing days, we were introduced to professors from various departments including Digital Design, Plastic Design, Architectural Design and Technology, and Architectural Design and Sustainable Construction. These professors shared insightful design research work with the students partaking in the workshop. Furthermore, Professor Annette Rudolph-Cleff featured Dr. Berthold Kaufmann from the German Passive House Research Institute to illuminate on the design principles of German passive houses, in particular, those set in humid, tropical climates.
Prof. Oliver Tessmann, the chair professor of Digital Design
Prof. Ariel Auslender. the chair professor of Plastic Design
Concluding three days of design work, the team exhibited the workshop outcomes on the afternoon of the 25th. The jury consisted of a team of joint Chinese and German teachers, and a total of six groups of students presented their creative design proposals, which were highly evaluated by the juries.
Final presentation
All participants in the hall of the School of Architecture, TUDA
Part II: Workshop
On the 27th, we were guided by Mr. Lin Li and Mr. Song Liang from TU Berlin to visit the main building of the TU Berlin School of Architecture, and introduced to our students the information about the various departments of the TU Berlin School of Architecture as well as the teaching activities. In the following days, the students also carried out green building study tours during their stay in Berlin, mainly on the renovation of the New National Gallery of Berlin, the renovation of the Reichstag building, the Jacob-und-Wilhelm-Grimm-Zentrum Library, the Museum of the Future and other projects, as well as visiting urban renewal areas such as Potsdamer Platz, etc.
The campus of Technical University of Berlin
In the hall of School of Architecture, Technical University of Berlin
Follow-up Activities
In order to summarize the experience of this activity and share the results of the design workshop, all the students who participated in the excursion will carry out the "German Architectural Excursion Sharing and Communication" on May 23, 2024 (Thursday) at 2:30 pm in the carpentry laboratory on the first floor of the Cai He Architecture Building (No. 27), and welcome all the teachers and students who are interested in the activity to visit the site and participate in the communication. The event is organized by the Undergraduate Architecture Party Branch of the School of Architecture.
Poster for this event
About the Course
Lastly, our course, "Architectural Design (V and VI) - Specialized Direction of Green Building", co-chaired by Prof. Xiao Yiqiang and Prof. Wang Jing, is aimed at addressing previous limitations in design teaching and international vision. The course encourages a multidisciplinary teaching system and the integration of various professional knowledge. Thanks to this program, more than 160 students have had the opportunity to learn through this program, and nearly 50% of them have gone on to study in some of the top 50 universities in the world. Our students' coursework results have been published in over 20 journals and won awards in numerous international and national green building design competitions. This program has been recognized as a first-class undergraduate program in 2023 by various institutions.
