Architecture and the imaginary: text stimulus to improve students' creativity with nonlinear design process

Abstract

PurposeThis study aims to examine whether a text stimulus could enhance students' imagination and thus enhance their creativity in the architectural design studio. The assumption is that adopting the text stimulus in the conceptual design stage would support students' imagination through a nonlinear design process, and ultimately produce the creative values of design outcomes.Design/methodology/approachA curriculum that adopts a text stimulus was developed and used for first-year university students. The aim was to implement an architectural setting to stimulate students' imagination with a framework for creativity evaluation. The study focused not only on the design process that characterizes the generation of concepts and ideas, but also on the processes related to the creative practices that students need for developing their own expression methods to solve problems they encounter.FindingsThe results show that design education that emphasizes the imaginary could enhance students' creative thinking, thus leading to creative design. As a training tool in the design studio, the diversity of interpretation following the text stimulus was revealed to provoke a nonlinear design process and to eventually enhance students' originality, differential and inventiveness, which are associated with the creativity criteria for evaluation.Originality/valueThe study explores the translation of imaginary spaces from text into spatial design as a conceptual tool in order to characterize and support creativity throughout design education in the architectural design studio.

Creative Thinking in the Architecture Design Studio: Bibliometric Analysis and Literature Review

“…Self-evaluation (8) Explored the relationship between the creativity assessment of design problem solving and the level of expertise of evaluators [58] Metacognitive process (9) Constructed a mental model for a creative approach to design problem solving and evaluation of students' creative and metacognitive thinking through a final design project [59] Structuring architectural processes (10) Evaluated the quality of learning achieved during the design team collaboration based on a rubric that included defining problems, idea generation, linking and integrating ideas, and adapting to the task at hand [60] Third elements (11) Comparativity (24) Compared the design creativity process of students and teachers, finding that students focus on operational aspects, while teachers pay more attention to student processes and outcomes [58] (25) Considered more broadly the "mode transitions" required to accommodate different types of thinking at different stages of the design process by using comparative studies of student outcomes [76] Interview (26) Interviewed 28 design instructors to examine the method of creativity and its use in the design studio, and suggested a more structured approach needed for the design studios [49] Historical theory (27) Used the historical theory of typology as a structured framework, including frame definition, conceptual design, and detailed project development [62] Structuring the design process (28) Explored the relationship between individual cognitive styles and creative performance [77] Metacognitive process (29) Proposed a conceptual model focusing on the role of metacognitive processing in design training programs to improve the generated design process and creative outcomes [78] (30) Emphasized that creative design thinking can provide metacognitive insights that include interpersonal skills, creativity, and digital skills that are strongly explained by design thinking variables [79] Enhancing creativity…”

“…The design studio approach consists of repetitive reflections and representations in the design process [28]. In terms of the education aspect, how new operative techniques change the role of creative thinking in the design studio needs to be identified rather than just experimenting with techniques [29].…”

“…• Clear described that architectural drawings are traditionally considered to have two main functions: communicating practical information about design and constructing architectural projects, or communicating aesthetic information about building materials or stylistic aspirations [75]; • Park revealed that drawings represent a good medium for design and communication, and text could stimulate students' creativity as a thinking transition in architectural studios [29].…”