University Course: Open source digital tools for Architecture representation (BIM and GIS)

For over fifty years, computers have reshaped architectural representation, education, and practice. Today, a handful of vendors dominate the tools architects use, locking professionals into opaque systems. This “black box” problem means graduates can produce drawings and models but cannot see, question, or adapt the processes that shape their work. Historically, software began as open, human-readable code that could be studied and modified. Since the 1980s, restrictive licensing and proprietary formats have narrowed access and innovation. Other industries—GIS, IT, gaming, media—embraced open-source tools to remain competitive, yet architecture lags behind. Most programs teach proprietary CAD/BIM as sealed systems, leaving students dependent on one workflow and blind to file structures and schemas. Optional coding electives reach only a few; most graduates enter practice without the ability to inspect or fix data. The challenge was embedding programming literacy and file transparency into a required representation course without turning it into a computer science class. I had to overcome two cultural barriers: the belief that coding is separate from design, and the habit of working in isolated files instead of shared, auditable environments. The course needed to show that reading, questioning, and modifying code can be as much a design act as drawing—and that understanding a tool’s inner workings makes architects more creative, not less.

The course is both a subject and a working example of open, inspectable infrastructure. All lectures, examples, and assignments live in a public repository—Reposarch—which students fork, modify, and submit via pull requests. Changes are reviewed in context and merged, giving students real-world version control experience from day one. Each session couples theory with practice. Historical context covers the shift from early open software to vendor lock-in, the rise of free and open-source movements, and the critical role of standards in interoperability. Representational tasks—capturing an object in photogrammetry, cleaning a mesh, mapping site data, publishing a 3D model to the web—are paired with technical lessons on file formats, coordinate systems, or schema structures. Nothing is hidden: every slide, menu, and 3D widget is a file students can open and edit. Feedback is anchored to actual diffs, and reflection prompts ask what data is stored, what disappears in conversion, and how defaults influence outputs. By repeating small “read–tweak–commit” cycles, students normalize the act of questioning and adapting tools. By the end, Git, JSON, and format conversion feel as routine as scaling a drawing—closing the gap between designer and technologist.