Beyond Frayling: Remapping Design Research Methods in the Context of Architectural Design Studio: Fid-Bau Portal

Beyond Frayling: Remapping Design Research Methods in the Context of Architectural Design Studio

Gunawan, Undi

Christopher Frayling (Research in art and design (Royal College of Art research papers, vol 1, no 1, 1993/4). RCA Research Repository. https://researchonline.rca.ac.uk/384/, 1994)’s triadic differentiation of research in art and design (research into art and design, research through art and design, and research for art and design) has been a subject of continuous critical examination. While Frayling’s framework provides a valuable classification of research in design, it may fall short in describing the dynamic and complex nature of research within design education, particularly in the context of architectural design studios. This paper begins by examining Frayling’s classical idea and critically map the idea through several recent publications on “design methods,” “design research,” and “architectural research” in the last decade (2013–2022), including works by Aksamija (Integrating innovation in architecture: design, methods and technology for progressive practice and research. Wiley, West Sussex, 2016; Research methods for the architectural profession. Routledge, New York, 2021), Bachman (Constructing the architect: an introduction to design, research, planning, and education. Routledge, London, 2019), Batista (The ontology of design research. Routledge, London, 2020), and Fraser (Design research in architecture: an overview. Routledge, London, 2021). Drawing on the author’s experience of conducting a first-year architectural design studio, the paper then discusses the strengths and limitations of Frayling’s framework in this context. It proposes modifications or alternative frameworks that could better capture the nuances of design research methods in this specific context. The findings of this study have implications for design research more broadly and suggest the need for continued critical examination of frameworks used to classify research in art and design.