Architecture 101 - Part I (iversity)

Architecture 101 - Part I (iversity)

From nothingness to place: To learn to stare, observe and see places like architects do. To transform a place into a state of mind.

Architecture to convert a place into a state of mind.
Apparently a simple task, actually a fairly tricky operation.
To (try to) understand, we split our journey into three parts.
This course is about part 1: from nothingness to place (part 2 is from place to space, part 3 is from space to architecture).

What is a place?
What is space?
How do we make space?
How do we prepare our mind to make space?
Without a concept, we can’t have a place.
Without a place, we can’t have space.
Without a space, we can’t have architecture...
If we want to create space, in the first instance, it has to happen in our mind. When a conceptual vision takes form in our minds, a place (with its own spatial features) is born.
Architecture 101 is an introduction to space and architecture through 101 exercises. A six-month journey divided into 3 courses “online” on iversity (part 1, part 2 and part 3), one final exhibition / graduation party. If you are still alive after all of this daunting process, there will be a one-week workshop “offline”, where we will go one step beyond.

Architecture 101 (part 1: from nothingness to place)
To start our journey, we will deal with the absence of space and place.
Something that could be defined as “nothingness”.
As Ang Lee or Paul Valery would respectively say :
“The source of all the material comes from nothingness.”
“God made everything out of nothing, but the nothingness shows through.”
In a different way, Ludwig Wittgenstein taught us that when things have no name, they don’t exist. Hence in order to understand things, we have to start with worlds in which things have no name. Pieces of music without sound. Televisions without signal.
We will go through the process of shaping meaning. Articulate and complex meanings, defining relationships between mind and bodies, bodies and places. Little by little, we will encounter places and see the world taking shape.
All of this, using a “hands-on” system (you will by doing).

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

The Business, Politics, Policy, & Players of Space Programs (Coursera) Coursera
University of Colorado Boulder

The Business, Politics, Policy, & Players of Space Programs (Coursera)

Welcome Course 3 - The Business, Politics, Policy, & Players of Space Programs. If you are here, you have successfully completed both Course 1 and 2 of this specialization. Course 3 has nine lessons spread out over 4 weeks with 31 Learning Objectives. In this course, we will discover who and what funds the exploration that we have enjoyed learning about in Course 1 and 2. We will also focus on a few specific applications of some of the concepts we have learned about so far with two companies, the Global Positioning System, and the an academic program that could be implemented at your institution of higher learning.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Sustainable Urban Development (edX) EdX
Wageningen University,Delft University of Technology,DelftX,WageningenX

Sustainable Urban Development (edX)

Learn why cities are key in resolving global urbanization and sustainability challenges and how you can engineer tomorrow’s cities today. Did you know that cities take up less than 3% of the earth’s land surface, but more than 50% of the world’s population live in them? And, cities generate more than 70% of the global emissions? Large cities and their hinterlands (jointly called metropolitan regions) greatly contribute to global urbanization and sustainability challenges, yet are also key to resolving these same challenges.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Railway History: The Rise of the Railway Station (FutureLearn) FutureLearn
University of Strathclyde

Railway History: The Rise of the Railway Station (FutureLearn)

Gain a unique insight into British history as you explore the heritage and uses of railway stations from the 19th century to now. Go behind the scenes of York Railway Museum with the University of Strathclyde. Railway stations are an integral part of British history, helping to shape the economy and Britain’s built environment. On this four-week course, you’ll discover the heritage of railway stations and their significance in British history and culture.

Self Paced
4 Weeks
Planet Earth ... and You! (Coursera) Coursera
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Planet Earth ... and You! (Coursera)

Earthquakes, volcanoes, mountain building, ice ages, landslides, floods, life evolution, plate motions—all of these phenomena have interacted over the vast expanses of deep time to sculpt the dynamic planet that we live on today. Planet Earth presents an overview of several aspects of our home, from a geological perspective. We begin with earthquakes—what they are, what causes them, what effects they have, and what we can do about them. We will emphasize that plate tectonics—the grand unifying theory of geology—explains how the map of our planet's surface has changed radically over geologic time, and why present-day geologic activity—including a variety of devastating natural disasters such as earthquakes—occur where they do. We consider volcanoes, types of eruptions, and typical rocks found there.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Architecting and Installing the Apigee Hybrid API Platform (Coursera) Coursera
Google Cloud

Architecting and Installing the Apigee Hybrid API Platform (Coursera)

This course introduces you to the fundamentals and practices used to install and manage Google Cloud's Apigee API Platform for hybrid cloud. Through a combination of lectures, hands-on labs, and supplemental materials, you will learn how to install and operate the Apigee API Platform. What you will learn: develop a good understanding of Apigee hybrid architecture; understand the Apigee hybrid terminology and organizational model; learn how to install and operate the hybrid platform.

Nov 2nd 2026
2 Weeks
Kinematics: Describing the Motions of Spacecraft (Coursera) Coursera
University of Colorado Boulder

Kinematics: Describing the Motions of Spacecraft (Coursera)

The movement of bodies in space (like spacecraft, satellites, and space stations) must be predicted and controlled with precision in order to ensure safety and efficacy. Kinematics is a field that develops descriptions and predictions of the motion of these bodies in 3D space. This course in Kinematics covers four major topic areas: an introduction to particle kinematics, a deep dive into rigid body kinematics in two parts (starting with classic descriptions of motion using the directional cosine matrix and Euler angles, and concluding with a review of modern descriptors like quaternions and Classical and Modified Rodrigues parameters).

Nov 2nd 2026
4 Weeks
Rocket Science in Everyday Life (Coursera) Coursera
University of Michigan

Rocket Science in Everyday Life (Coursera)

We encounter the results of rocket science all the time; from weather prediction to GPS navigation, rocket science has helped navigate our world in new, innovative ways. Rocket Science in Everyday Life explores innovations in rocket science, including the formation of space agencies, like NASA and the European Space Agency, that work to advance rocket science. Learn how satellites are used to track climate changes across the globe and how rockets have taken us to worlds beyond our own.

Nov 2nd 2026
4 Weeks