Integrating Creativity and Discipline into Structural Design Education

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Maria Moreyra Garlock
Juan José Jorquera Lucerga

Abstract

In one of the most classic courses at Princeton University, it is argued that the best-designed structures (bridges, buildings and shells) are works of art – structural art. It teaches that design creativity involves both technical skills (discipline and rigor) plus aesthetic sensitivity. This course has been taught to structural engineers, architects and all liberal arts majors for more than forty years. This course on structural art is a gateway course for structural engineering majors that provides context and history and introduces the basic formulas that structural engineers use to create forms and designs. Such an approach needs to be rein- forced among upperclassmen once they have a deeper understanding of structural analysis and design. The curriculum of structural engineer- ing students, in other words, should be both rigorous and include the history of the profession. Such integrated teachings illustrate that ‘cre- ative play’ is iterative and ‘disciplined,’ that creativity takes courage and that constraints enable creativity. This article elaborates on these points and shows how such concepts are taught at Princeton starting in the freshman year and continuing on through graduate school.

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How to Cite
Moreyra Garlock, M., & Jorquera Lucerga, J. J. (2018). Integrating Creativity and Discipline into Structural Design Education. Academia XXII, 9(18), 28–41. https://doi.org/10.22201/fa.2007252Xp.2018.18.67941

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Author Biographies

Maria Moreyra Garlock

Professor at Princeton University in the Department of Civil and Envi- ronmental Engineering, and Engineering and the co-director of the Ar- chitecture and Engineering Program. Her research aims to bridge the gap between academia and practice, both in advancing knowledge of structural engineering and in the education of future engineers. Among other subjects, Dr. Garlock studies outstanding examples of structural - nomy and elegance. She has co-authored a book and book chapters on the subject and co-curated several exhibitions with scale models and instructional displays that teach about exemplary structural engineering Felix Candela: Engineer, Builder, Structural Artist.

Juan José Jorquera Lucerga

Assistant Professor at the Polytechnic University of Cartagena (Spain) in the Department of Civil Engineering and deputy director of the School focusing on the design of bridges and civil engineering structures. He is the founder and director of the New Structural Typologies (n ) Re- search Group, where, along with his team, he explores the frontiers of conceptual design in an effort to generate novel forms that are simul- point of view.