air journal Charlie Paine 702331
Guggenheim Museum - Under Construction, Frank Gehry, 1997
c o N T E N T
Hyperbuilding, OMA/ Rem Koolhaas, 1996
Part A - Conceptualisation 2
A0 Introduction
3
A1 Design Futuring
A1.1 Case Study 01 - Frank Gehry
A1.2 Case Study 02 - OMA/ Rem Koolhaas
9 11 13 14 15
A2 Design Computation
A3 Composition/Generation A4 Conclusion
A5 Learning Outcomes A6 Appendix - Algorithmic Skechbook
A0
introduction perhaps with battling through a few of the ‘drier’ introductory subjects within the Environments course, my motivation began to depreciate and I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t considered dropping the course altogether.
My name is Charlie Paine, born and raised in Melbourne, I guess have always been exposed to a massive array of creative design and architecture. I think I first developed an interest in becoming an architect at a very early age, when I saw the movie Click (2006). My little brother and I had an obsession at that stage with Adam Sandler, and seeing him in that movie depicted as a successful architect, playing around with cool models and drawings, I imagine this is what kickstarted my desire to be an architect In school, my best two subjects were maths and art, so to me it made sense to go down the architecture path, dad always told me that’s all it takes. It would probably be safe to say that to a certain extent, since leaving school, my yearning to be an architect has swayed slightly. My realisation that the industry was largely computer based, paired
However, this year (arguably semester), I told myself that I wouldn’t throw away the personal and financial resources I have spent in getting here, and that spike in self-motivation has honestly rekindled my interest in Architecture. Before this semester, every project I had done to date was hand-drawn, which managed to get me thus far. However, seeing as this subject is almost entirely computerbased, it will be a challenge that I truly am looking forward to!
A1
Design futuring
During my three years at the University of Melbourne, I’m not sure I’ve attended a lecture or a tutorial under the course umbrella of ‘Environments’ in which the word ‘sustainability’ has not been mentioned, and additionally, consistently topical. It is without a doubt the central focus of any successful design, whether it be drawn or built, and is the key driver for any design process of the 21st century and beyond. Naturally and uncontrollably, we are moving towards a more uncertain future, and the quality of life our children will have is largely dependent on design, whether it be in the architectural, scientific, technological or any other design-driven realm. Design futuring is setting out to develop a new building intelligence1, a creative form of design that will adhere to longevity and sustainability; and also, with democratic design as the foundation, create a 1
Fry, 2009
socially constructive future which would facilitate citizen-consumer participation and redefine our relationship and conception of reality 1. One thing that is safe to assume is that technology will continue to grow exponentially and infinitely. The traditional notion of connecting with your immediate neighbours has been driven obsolete, with the internet providing a catalyst for people to connect with like-minded people all over the planet. Additionally, a better future for one person is one that is wished to be avoided by another – dependent on demographic and culture – among other things. Meaning, the now seemingly distant idea of the creation of a truly utopian city, a dream of earlier centuries fallen apart due to sustainability prerequisites, should now be broken down and redirected to form ideal ‘utopias’ specific to each individual. 1
Dunne, 2013
Signature Towers, Zaha Hadid, 2006
A1.1 Case study 01 frank gehry
Disney hall (2002)
Frank Gehry’s Disney Hall (2003), a concept envisaged in 1988 in response to a design competition a year earlier, is an example of architecture’s ability to reshape one’s way of thinking, or reimagine reality through built form. Gehry, renowned for his free-flowing and fluid design, and his inclination to replace generic geometry and rational order with sweeping curves and non-rectilinear shapes1, without ever sacrificing the intended functionality, brought a refreshed design aesthetic to more basic contexts. The building engages its audience sensually, both visually from the grandiose external form realized through vast sweeping titanium sheets, and audially, with the concert hall’s billowed, rolling ceiling acting as a superior acoustic system, while subtly referencing the sculptural language of the exterior2. In perhaps all concert halls I have visited, there have been areas of the audience 1 https://www.artsy.net/ artwork/frank-gehry-lewisresidence-final-model-unbuiltlyndhurst-ohio 2 http://www.archdaily. com/441358/ad-classics-waltdisney-concert-hall-frank-gehry
which have been visually obstructed, however there is no need for internal supporting columns, as the steel roof structure spans the entire space. Gehry also left balconies and boxes out of the design, usually the central aspects of any concert hall design, in an effort to eliminate social segregation and hierarchy. The initial conception of the design was to bring life to downtown Los Angeles, in turn it has brought not only a rise in the value of surrounding properties but a greater social and cultural epicenter for the city. The reigning impact this buildinghas on the surrounding landscape and environment through its experimental form is an example of life-enhancing architecture and positive design for the future.
Disney Hall, Frank Gehry, 2002
“I am always trying to express movement. I was fascinated with the fold – so basic to our first feelings of love and warmth” -Frank Gehry (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt1_BgCN6lU) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gt1_BgCN6lU
a1.2 Case stuDy 02 OMA/REm Koolhaas
‘Hyperbuilding’ (1996)
Never built, but turned into a fantastical playground for ideas to evolve and manifest through a series of mixed-use urban systems, the Hyperbuilding, by the Office of Metropolitan Architecture (OMA), headed by Rem Koolhaas, was conceived as a solution to overcrowding in Thailand’s capital city, manifested through a one kilometer high, self contained city, exploring vertical living possibilities relating to connectivity, communications, accessibility and circulation on a vast urban scale1. The idea of a self-contained megastructure, functioning as a city, is not the first of its kind, however. The Walking City, and The Plug-In City, concepts explored by Ron Herron and published in avantgarde architecture journal Archigram in 1964, though envisaged as more of a whimsical exploration, are two examples of autopoietic architectural systems and communications,which circulate and connect in an ongoing recursive network2
1 https://architizer.com/ blog/what-if/ 2 Schumacher, 2012
However, the advantages accompanying the hyper-concentrated structure would not be as ostensible or significant on a developed city such as New York or Tokyo, as it would not bring much to the table that these cities don’t already have. Rather it would be better suited to a developing capital city, such as Bangkok, wherein a reduction in reliance on commuting would be eliminated, through what can be seen as an integration of several mixed use buildings, resulting in an urban hub of an entirely new kind3.
3 http://oma.eu/projects/ hyperbuilding
“ To a c h i e v e u r b a n v a r i e t y a n d c o m p l e x i t y, t h e b u i l d i n g i s s t r u c t u r e d a s a metaphor of the city: towers constitute streets, horizontal elements are parks, volumes are districts, and d i a g o n a l s a r e b o u l e v a r d s .� Hyperbuilding, OMA/ Rem Koolhaas, 1996
a2 John Frazer, British architectural academic maintains that “design computation is still only seen as ‘just a tool’ and remote from the real business of creative design”1. However, computation in design enables greater opportunity for design form, form impossible to conceive on paper, through parametric modelling. It applies new methods and outcomes to a designer’s problems, and reformulates complications to be amenable to computational approaches2. Parametric design as a facility for the control of topological relationships, enables the modulation of the raw elements of a design3. As seen in Gehry’s Disney Hall, and consistent throughout his deconstructivist designs of the last 20 years, computing allowed him to move away from generic geometric forms and conventional structural systems, such as Frank Lloyd Wright’s use of Froebel blocks to construct form, and enabled him to explore unpredictable, curvilinear forms through the means of parametric modelling, based on very rough sketches. geometry is de-emphasized as a theoretical precondition, and viewed as one possible formal result. Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao is the architype of these notion, an iconic 1 2 3
Frazer, 2006 Cuny, Snider, Wing, 2010 Oxman, 2014
design computat i o n architectural embodiment of the turn of the century shift of the modernist ethos. “The building was analog in design and digital in production”4. It is in this way argued that computation is redefining the practice of architecture.
The effect this has on the building industry on each end of the spectrum, both design and construction, is a perpetually growing expectance or prerequisite for a younger generation of individuals to be fully competent with computational processes, and without, it would ultimately leave those, who may be great with a pen in hand yet no knowledge of computing programs, in the dark. This growing tendency of architects to rely upon the scripting of algorithms for research-based design is ostensible in the Serpentine Pavilion (2002) by Toyo Ito and Cecil Balmond, a design which expressively articulated the artistic and tectonic potential of the algorithm in architecture. The complex, seemingly random pattern of the form was derived ‘from an algorithm of a cube that expanded as it rotated. The numerous triangles and trapezoids formed by this system of intersecting lines were clad to be either transparent 4
Oxman, 2014
or translucent, giving a sense of infinitely repeated motion’5.
develop (oxman). “It is possible to claim that a designer ’s creativity is limited by the very pro-
The emerging expansion of a new discourse of digital design in architecture has evolved in the last decade, through the preference of non-orthogonal geometries and experimental form achieved parametrically, and will only continue to 5 http://www. serpentinegalleries.org/ exhibitions-events/serpentinegallery-pavilion-2002-toyo-itoand-cecil-balmond-arup
grams that are supposed to free their i m a g i n a t i o n .” Terzidis, Kostas (2009). Algorithms for Visual Design Using the Processing
Serpentine Pavilion, 2002
Left: Guggenheim Museum, Frank Gehry, Sketch Right: Guggenheim Museum, Frank Gehry, Spain, 1997
a3
Composition /g e n e r ato i n
Symmetrical composition is one of the oldest and consistently used ordering principles in architecture. When looking at mankind’s first buildings, from the ancient Greek’s temple Parthenon, built in 438 BC, through to administrative buildings of more recent times, such as Melbourne’s State Library, it is evident that symmetry as a compositional device was originally employed to instill a building with balance, and ultimately represent connotations of nobility and power. However, today, with the ability to computationally modify geometries of a building to abstract entities, through parametric modelling and the application of algorithmic devices, the idea of symmetry within the context of a design is completely superseded. The Centre de Congres in Mons, Balgium, by Daniel Libeskind is an example of architecture that has completely deviated from traditional symmetry once abundant in architecture. Completed in 2015, and conceived by the city of Mons, a small medieval town, to revolutionize as a European centre of culture (2). It was envisaged as a key element in the economic revitalization of the city, and
with it’s new-age design, and rounded form, juxtaposed with sharp, non-orthogonal geometries, is sure expand the architectural language of the old city. Since Computer-Aided-Design (CAD) was first introduced to desktop computers in 1982, most architects have used computers to simply digitize the processes of preconceived ideas, this refers to the term computerization. However, since the development of programs such as Grasshopper, a visual programming language that has informed a new generation of scripting culture, augmenting the intellect of the user and further increasing the capacity to generate complex order, form and eventually structure from a design. Generationally, we are moving from an era where architects used computers to simply aid the representation of their design, to one where architects explore architectural concepts through the writing and modifying of algorithms that relate to placement of traditional architectural qualities such as points, lines and planes, how these are configured, and the relationship between these configurations1 1
Peters, 2013
Computation, for architects, acts as an accelerator to simulate the analysis of building and environmental performance, knowledge of materials and tectonics in their designs. If we deem successful architecture upon its encounter between the building and the public, as American architect Stan Allen suggests, the tools in which we choose to design has no concern, and with the increasing capabilities of computation, enabling architects to model the encounter between architecture and
the public in advance using more accurate and sophisticated methods2. In this way computation not only gives better flexibility to design but also communicates an enhanced experience for the user. Contrarily, the social or existing context of a project cannot necessarily be determined simply by a computer. For instance, touching on my own previous studies, where we were prompted to design ‘a space for keeping secrets’ one’s mind precedes a computer in the development of the design context.
2 http://libeskind.com/work/ centre-de-congres-a-mons/
“When architects have a sufficient understanding of algorithmic concepts, when we no longer need to discuss the digital as something different, then computation can become atrue method of design for architecture” Pe t e r s , C o m p u t a t i o n Wo r k s , T h e B u i l d i n g o f A l g o r i t h m i c T h o u g h t , p p 8 - 1 3
The Centre de Congres, Mons, Daniel Libeskind, 2015
a4
Conclusion
The conceptualisation aspect of the design process is arguably the most important. Though we are yet to really develop a design outcome, the foundations are in place. With the introduction of Rhino, and its counterpart, Grasshopper, I have naturally developed a style in approach of which I will continue to follow throughout the course.
My intended approach is, like most architects or designers, based mostly on trial and error, through experimentation. Playing parametrically with the three core components of architecture, point, line and plane, I envisage to create something unique, profoundly surmountable with the infinite possibilities computation presents.
a5
Learning outcomes
In the last three weeks I have learnt more about algorithms and computing in architecture than I ever thought I would, yet there is still an infinite amount to learn. This is a fantastic concept however daunting it may be. Given I had never used any Computer-Aided-Software in my university
career, I am pleased with my progress to date, and hope to continue this through until November. I imagine last year’s Earth Studio would have eventuated into a much more comprehensive and beautiful design with the knowledge I have now in both Rhino and Grasshopper.
Lewis Residence, Frank Gehry, 1995
a6 appendixalgorithmic sketches
The first week’s algorithmic excersies followed the curve, and how when lofted, it would create a curvilinear surface reminiscent of a folded cloth, much like the work and compositional style of Frank Gehry. The top five outcomes are those from two curves, below that are the outcomes of three curves lofted, and with the bottom five outcomes I decided to play around with eight curves to get accomplish a truly unique beautiful collection of forms
Week 2’s exercise had us look at the human form and how we could apply knowledge from the first couple of weeks to create a 3d geometry parametrically to be worn by the human mesh.
a7
Bibliography
Dunne, Anthony & Raby, Fiona (2013) Speculative Everything: Design Fiction, and Social Dreaming (MIT Press) pp. 1-9, 33-45 Fry, Tony (2008). Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg), pp. 1–16 Oxman, Rivka and Robert Oxman, eds (2014). Theories of the Digital in Architecture (London; New York: Routledge), pp. 1–10 Peters, Brady. (2013) ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, Architectural Design, 83, 2, pp. 08-15 Schumacher, Patrik (2011). The Autopoiesis of Architecture: A New Framework for Architecture (Chichester: Wiley), pp. 1-28
Part b
criteria design
Part B - Criteria Design
B1 Research Field B2 Case Study 01
24 26
Seroussi Pavilion - Biothing
B3 Case Study 02
38
Double Agent White - Marc Fornes / TheVeryMany
B4 Technique Development B5 Prototypes B6 Technique Proposal B7 Learning Objectives & Outcomes B8 Appendix - Algorithmic Skechbook
44 48 50 52 53
content
b1
research field strips / folDing
The designated research field I will be exploring is Strips and folding, as I found the precedent projects most interesting and applicable to an ‘armour-like’ garment. I would like to provoke a feeling of continuity and movement via the garment and the processes of strips and folding will allow me to generate this mood through the form of my proposal
Similarly, the Institute for Computational Design (ICD) and the Institute of Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE) designed and constructed a research pavilion for the University of Stuttgart, displaying the qualities of material oriented-design, whereby The structure is entirely based on the elastic bending behavior of birch plywood strips1.
Folding in architecture provides the possibility to define new abstract spaces within the structure. An example we see everyday is ARM’s revamp of the northeast façade of Melbourne Central, where we see timber bending over to create a unique aesthetic/ shelter for the building. Though attainable without computation, it is nonetheless an example of the possibilities of folding and strips in architecture.
1
Furthermore, HATZ architects’ Paradise House is an example of linear panels applied in a folding pattern to create different types of spaces both interior and exterior with varying functions and geometric qualities.
archimmenges, 2010
b2 case study 1.0 Biothing
Seroussi pavilion
The Seroussi Pavilion by Biothing is an intriguing collection of curves, created by placing electro-magnetic fields (or charges) on segments of four base curves, then running field lines through the newly created charge points to create what gives a visual feel of a ‘living’ or growing design. At first sight, the pavilion reminded me of a collection of jellyfish or glowing plankton, and playing with the given GH definition parameters furthered this notion of a ‘living’ form.
By piping the form in my final iterations, I was able to better envisage the selfmodifying patterns as an actual structure, and once rendered they provided quite a beautiful coral or fish skeleton-like form.
I t e r at i o n s
Iterations 1.0 - 1.4 The first modifications I made to the definition of the Seroussi Pavilion were the adjustments to the amount of segments on each founding curve. I also played with the curves themselves, changing their direction to create different forms, and finally the radius of the circles projected around the points.
0.0) original linework
1.0) points on curve - 10
1.1) points on curve - 30
1.2) points on curve - 1
1.3) circle radius - 2
1.4) shape of curves altered
Iterations 2.0 - 2.3 The second set of iterations saw the altering of the amount of segments around each circle, as well as the amount of field lines computed through each of the points. this produced more interesting results
2.0) field line - 750
2.1) field line - 25
Iterations 3.0 - 3.2 I then added a locally defined value into the decay input of the point charge. there was not much variety in form however 3.0) p charge decay - (-1)
Iterations 4.0 - 5.2
4.0)
4.1)
Iterations 4.0 through to 4.6 saw the changing in the graph mapper to produce much more complicated and desired results. The fifth group of iterations were piped and rendered through v-ray.
4.5)
4.6)
2.2) circle point count - 50 field line - 50
2.3) circle point count - 100 field line - 100
3.1) p charge decay - 100
4.2)
5.0) pipe radius - 0.1
2.4) circle point count - 200 field line - 200
3.2) p charge decay - 1
4.3)
4.4)
5.1) pipe radius - 0.1
5.2) pipe radius - 0.1
favourable outcome 1 the following three iterations were favoured in form and achieved through changing specific parameters. the first rendition was achieved using a conic graph, with the resulting curves piped with a 0.1 radius. the next two were achieved with a parabola graph and a square root graph, respectively. the following forms have been judged on a set of criteria that will be relevant in designing our final concept. the spatiality - are aspects of the design nicely arranged? the complexity - are too many aspects competing for position? the overall aesthetic - is it attractive? would you wear it? the constructability - how easy/hard would it be to construct?
Spatiality 8/10 Complexity 5/10 Aesthetic 8/10 Constructability
3/10
favourable outcome 2
Spatiality 8/10 Complexity 7/10 Aesthetic 9/10 Constructability
5/10
favourable outcome 3
Spatiality 7/10 Complexity 7/10 Aesthetic 8/10 Constructability
6/10
b3 case study 2.0 mac forbes/theverymany double agent white
Double Agent white by Mac Forbes and TheVeryMay is a continuous surface composed of an intersection of nine uniquely sized spheres, achieving a maximized sense of morphological freedom, while at the same time using minimal components, through object-oriented computation. The process of strips and folding may be difficult to assume applicable to this structure, however it was put together by joining strips of aluminium sheet, each piece uni que to the next. This project is one of the first of its kind in its exploration of a double agent system. The overall geometry is generated by a controlled system which minimizes the
number of elements needed to be cut within the aluminum. The second system crafts ‘aperture as ornament’ through an expressive set of morphologies. The two sets then inform each other simultaneously, following the logic of assembly mobility. This project was chosen to reverse engineer as its form was relatively simple to understand, yet provided a dynamic structure which pushed formal and technical constraints to create a beautiful display of spatial integrity 1 1
Escobedo, 2012
reverse engineer 2
step by step 5 4
3
1
1
3
create base sphere with plane and radius
populate sphere with points, create voronoi cells
2
4
smooth the mesh using weaverbird smooth mesh
find cell outlines on sphere surfaces, extract vertices
6
7
5
7
redraw for straight polylines, average all vertices to find face centroids, scale polylines using centroids
convert meshes and join
8
6
8
loft to create surfaces, extract faces for meshing
catmull-clark subdivision and weaverbird thicken
final outcome
b4 technique development
`
the sphere at the beginning of the definition was replaced with a box. the number of cells was dropped and mesh thickness was increased to create a more wholesome form weqwqwwew
It looks as if the Voronoid Sphere is containing a much sharper and more dangerous inner sphere. The second iteration’s thickness has been thickened to create a much softer surface with less (and smaller) perferations
the sphere was replaced with an ellipsis, mesh thickness, smoothness, as well as number of cells was played with to generate unnatural structures
The points here were again referenced into a box. We then changed the number of Voronoid cells within the box. This allowed for it to either be completely wrapped around or look ‘broken’
b5 the final model to prototype was chosen on the basis of its aesthetic form , as well as its functionality as a garment. the holes around the model would make it easy to connect to other aspects through the use of rope, with the rope also adding flexibility to the design. We sent it off to the 3D printer to test its physical quality. another design was also printed however failed due to its lack of thickness in specific areas. this was countered by creating a GH definition (below) to thicken the object, and was then successful in printing.
prototypes
b6 technique proposal the chosen site for our garment to be photographed is the carpark underneath Melbourne University. the structure is made up of weaving curvilinear columns, similar to the form of our prototype. the material we envisage to use will be grey to fit in with the concrete-dominant context of the site, which will be juxtaposed, at this stage, with white rope and a black undergarment. the final proposal was three dimensionally rendered and is seen on a model to the right.
b7 learning objectives & outcomes so far, I am happy with the small form we were able to print, it is relatable to the site in its form and aesthetic and is functional as a garment, however i would like to expand the concept and explore how we can orient forms over garments without sacrificing the flexibility and lightness that the use of rope would achieve. i understand that using rope is short cutting and that there would be a way to design an adjustable garment parametrically through computation. the armour must be light and flexible, as i want to be able to wear it if i want, and for it not to be a one-dimensional piece of clothing. I would like to further my understanding of attracting items to a point, as well as fabricating objects so they can open and close if needed.
b8 appendix algorithmic sketches