Abstract

This study focuses on the early design phase experienced by students in the architectural design studio. The early design phase, where the first design concepts are created, is the most important part of the transformation process that forms the major decisions of design concepts. In the early design phase, the designer begins to produce various concepts based on his/her personal and professional knowledge and experiences. The purpose of this study is to examine how students of architecture transform their knowledge to form their first design decisions in the early design phase. For this purpose, a model has been developed analyzing the sample architectural representations produced in the early design phase. It is composed of the stages of: (A) Knowledge Acquisition, (B) Synthesis, (C) Analysis, and (D) First Design and Evaluation. Stages A, B, and C are in relation with cyclical feedback on the first degree. Stages C and D provide data with cyclical feedback on the second degree. The process of the model of the early design phase can be explained as follows: WHAT the declarative knowledge groups used in stage (A) (technical knowledge, theoretical knowledge, environmental knowledge, social knowledge) and HOW procedural knowledge is used; in stage (B), the knowledge to be used in stage (A) are related—whether this relation is carried out spatially, functionally, symbolically, typologically, technologically, socially or not; in stage (C), the first design solutions demonstrating the relations detected to be used in stage (B) are produced—whether these solutions are produced analogically, pragmatically, canonically, iconically, integratedly or not; in stage (D), solutions presented in stage (C) are evaluated—whether these solutions meet the criteria of formal, functional, environmental, spatial and technical evaluation or not are analyzed. The implementation of the proposed model has been fulfilled by a case study. Twelve students from Architectural Design Studio 3 at the Department of Architecture at Yildiz Technical University participated in the case study. First findings of the case study have shown that the relation with cyclical feedback presented in the early design phase model is only realized when the acquired knowledge is transformed as much as necessary. Transformation is determinant only if it creates new knowledge that can be used in the first design product.