Undercurrent: swimming away from the design studio

Should architectural education pull away from the design studio as the dominant form for architectural education? Can live projects offer a more relevant, inclusive, and engaging model? In order to establish points of divergence from studio-based learning and using a definition of live projects established in collaboration with Colin Priest, a comparative analysis is made between contemporary architectural live projects and the Public Art Projects led by David Harding at the Environmental Art Department, Glasgow School of Art from 1985. This comparison reveals the potential of live projects to extend collaborative ways of working beyond graduation and between the university and its community. With reference to Lave and Wenger’s theory of situated learning as legitimate peripheral participation, the paper demonstrates how live project learning can be understood and valued. A case is made for a shift towards a transformative, democratic and holistic form of learning made possible by live projects