Ancient Courtyards Get a Modern Makeover

Long before modern air conditioning, builders in Egypt and Mexico relied on central courtyards to catch cooling breezes and carve out private, shaded gathering spaces. In 2026, first-year students in Wentworth Institute of Technology's School of Architecture and Design studied these exact historical blueprints to tackle today's design challenges.

Led by Associate Professor Lora Kim, the studio pushed the class to look past high-tech fixes and translate these timeless architectural principles into sustainable community centers. To achieve this, students like Nick Oddo and Will Pearse spent weeks analyzing how different societies shaped their outdoor spaces to balance harsh climates with human connection.

Oddo's research focused heavily on traditional Egyptian courtyards, specifically those found in Cairo, alongside a contemporary precedent study of Tokyo's famous Moriyama House. His final design, a performing arts center featuring two courtyards, was deeply influenced by the regional balance of gathering and solitude.

"A big thing that I took into my project was the use of a majaz, which is a two-corridor entryway that privatizes the courtyards," Oddo said, noting how the traditional architectural feature gracefully manages the relationship between public and private space.

Pearse took a similar approach, anchoring his research in Mexican typologies. His design for a community center integrates a careful balance of architectural masses and voids (solid structures and open spaces) to optimize indoor/outdoor comfort without relying entirely on energy grids.

"They were primarily used for gatherings and an extension of the interior space," Pearse said of the historical Mexican structures. "They really wanted to integrate wind airflow through the courtyard because it would get really hot during the summer."

Throughout the multi-week studio, students moved fluidly from historical research to drafting detailed floor plans, ultimately translating their concepts into intricate, three-dimensional physical models.