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The Science of Human Settlements: Key Debates on Environment, Urbanisation and Development
Last Updated: 2026-06-03 00:07:21
Abstract
Hospitality is ethical, political, and spatial, shaping human coexistence from personal to global level, defining belonging through spatial boundaries. This course examines hospitality in early modern architecture, linking civic values with spatial organization. It explores theories from Renaissance texts and philosophers like Kant and Derrida, while connecting architecture, politics, and culture.
Objective
Hospitality is ethical, political, and spatial. It is indispensable for human coexistence both at an inter-personal and inter-state level. It defines spaces as homes and constitutes spatial contracts that mark territories of belonging and non-belonging. This course scrutinizes the concept of hospitality in early modern architectural history, extending questions of civic and ethical values into those of spatial organization. It will include discussions on the approaches to hospitality in Renaissance treatises on government (e.g. Machiavelli, Pontano) and early modern architectural theory, philosophical theories of hospitality (Kant, Levinas, Derrida), and combine present-day perspectives from architecture, arts, anthropology, political theory, and international relations. The framework of hospitality allows for a joint study of the developments of various types of buildings and spaces – border zones, urban spaces, city halls, conference houses, court residences, hotels, guest houses, and private homes. Architectural elements and mechanisms of boundary-making, access, and exclusion will be explored within (cross-cultural) contexts shaped by power dynamics in micro and macro scales, showing the relevance of global art history for early modern architecture.
General Information
- Language
- English
- Levels
- BSC
- Frequency
- Semesterly recurring
Examination
- Type
- ungraded semester performance
Registration & Places
- Max Places
- 20
- Signup End
- 25.09.2026
Course Components
| Type | Title | Time & Place | Hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| seminar |
The Science of Human Settlements: Key Debates on Environment, Urbanisation and Development
No course on October 22 (seminar week) and in the last two semester weeks (final critiques).
|
No time listed | 2 h weekly |