Design Studio 11 Master of Architecture (MArch RIBA Part 2)
Dusan Decermic & Clare Carter
Dusan Decermic is an experienced practitioner and academic, with multiple leading roles in curriculum delivery and design studio teaching at MA level of study.
Clare Carter ran her own practice for over ten years, specialising in one-off private residential designs, after previous experience in large practices designing for housing and healthcare. Clare has taught architectural design for many years, while her first degree in social anthropology continues to influence her approach.
Neapolis 2024
Year 1: Noa Bashan, Christopher John Briggs, Angelina Chatzidimitriou, Juliette Domage, Oliver James Henry Rash, Kaspar Rechardt, Haodong (Harry) Wu, Yuelin Zhou
Year 2: Fannia Chung, Tara Dehghanpour, Daniel Fay, Enrico Focardi, Angeliki Giannakodimou, William Lambert, Georgia Papadopoulou, Shyam Patel, Reesha Sudra
DS11 has a long track record in European City research as evidenced in the Studio as Book publication Intrinsic / Extrinsic City. Furthering our examination, research and fascination of Europe, in alternate years we venture to the extreme South and North of the continent.
This year our search has taken us to Naples, a fiercely independent city with a striking culture of extremes; man-made and natural disasters a frequent reminder of the underlying, dark neuroses lying beneath quotidian colour. Europe has not been a good patron of Naples, leaving it impoverished and to fend for itself, teetering on the brink of ecological catastrophe with areas like the ‘Triangle of Death’ – the largest, open illegal burning dump in Europe. Mount Vesuvius looms, no stranger to delivering its own menace. And yet, despite these frames of uncertainty, one finds a vibrant city, continuing to survive despite mounting challenges, with charm and raw beauty all around and ancient history buried beneath.
Having first researched from afar, the students’ understanding and design explorations were enriched by seeing and experiencing the city for themselves during our school-supported field trip. They have responded with a range of socially- and economically-engaged projects; in many cases requiring a mini-urban masterplan due to the sheer scale of fabric destruction.
Proposals including: two local power stations to respond to geothermal potential and eco-waste incineration; the revival of local pottery production; textile and fashion industry remediation; the revival of local ‘marine’ wine; a new bio-institute to clean polluted soil; and a vast salvage operation of city artefacts, are just some of the vehicles bringing new ideas to this extraordinary city and its resilient people. We thank all of our students, external critics and the academics we met in Naples for their generous support throughout the year.
Guest Critics: Pierre D’Avoinne (Pierre D’Avoinne Architects), Victoria Collins, Tim Leach, Nicholas Papas (N V Papas), James Van Dunn (Weston Williamson), Joanna Zwierzchowska (Assemble)
Archive of DS11’s work from previous years:
(no studio in 2022-2023)
