Summary

The focus of the undergraduate module assessment work, “How did built technologies and materials make architecture?”, was on the construction techniques and workers of Macau’s old buildings. Topics were chosen from a variety of architectural programs, ranging from religious architecture (churches or temples), domestic architecture (Chinese houses), military architecture (fortresses), or other facilities. Starting from the “Macau Cultural Heritage” website, students produced a poster presentation and entered a photography competition.

On 23 October 2025, the posters were printed and presented in class, where they were commented on by Professors Ana Vaz Milheiro, Filipa Fiúza and Sónia Henrique. The aim of this feedback was to improve the posters for the final delivery, incorporating the jury’s comments if necessary. The jury also chose the winning selfie. The selfies and posters were displayed.

Exercise

1. Poster

Part 1: a) Project title (name of the building, e.g., St. Anthony’s Church and Square; St. Francis Fort and Barracks; Chio Family Mansion; Mandarin’s House; Sam Seng Temple…); Author; Date; Location; Developer/Owner; Contractor; Financing/Cost; b) Construction; Historical context; Materials and systems; Workers and skills (e.g., carpenters, masons, laborers…)

Part 2: Several images of the building (including archival documentation such as old drawings and photographs), schematics and diagrams, and current photos taken by you.

2. Photography Contest In addition to the images of the buildings under study, which should make up the two pages of the poster, each student took photos of themselves in the building under study (like a “selfie”), choosing one for the “photography contest” and printing it in large format (minimum A3). One of the objectives is for the building’s construction materiality to be conveyed through this “selfie” or self-portrait.

See posters here.