Digital Design - Module 01 Semester 1, 2019 Ziyuan (Helena) Cui
1067712 Tony Yu Studio 16
Week One
Reading: Zeara Polo, A. 2010. Between Ideas and Matters.
According to Zeara-Polo, the diagram does not play a representational role in the design process but provides an organisational and can have a performative quality depending on how it is deployed. Explain how Diagram is different from Signs and Symbols? (100 words Maximum)
A diagram is reductive in nature. Though a diagram may look simple, it can deploy accurate control over a project while maintaining a potential in the project, which is opposite to the representational nature of signs, including icons, indexes, and symbols. As a tool, a diagram always has a spatial correlation and the ability to prescribe the performances of space. This explicit relationship between form and content is something a sign usually does not possess. Also, a diagram allows the changing of information and conditions. A diagram only enters a real space when a mediation is provided.
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Week One
Precedent Analysis “Radix” pavilion was done by Aires Mateus as a contribution to the Venice Biennale 2012. It consists of a steel installation located on the docks of Arsenal. The installation intends to create a continuity with arcaded Arsenal galleries. Fig.1. Radix is an arch “supported on three points and a fourth end suspended over the water”. The overhanging dome creates a sense of lightness within the heavy metal installation.
Fig.2. The open cut void blurs the threshold. Without the overhead cover, it’s hard to define that a person is truly “in” a space, yet the curved surface makes the person feel surrounded by the architecture already. It forms a welcoming manner and seems to encourage the passers-by to go into the pavilion and explore.
Fig. 3. The design of Radix without anything with an explicit functionality refrains it from prescribing usages. However, the shadows and the steps along the river do allow people to sit and thus creates a communal space.
Fig. 1,2, 3. Nico Saieh, Radix Pavilion, 2012. https://www.archdaily.com/267567/venice-biennale-2012-radix-aires-mateus
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Week One
Precedent Model
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 4. Build a box and three spheres according to the data. Fig. 5. Assemble the elements according to the orthographic drawings on top view. Fig. 6. Remove the intersecting volume. Fig. 7. Add on ribs Fig. 7 The essence of the design of “Radix” is to take out the volume that the outer box and the spheres intersect. To begin with, a box and three spheres were built as basic elements. Elements were then set up according to the plan and the intersection was removed using Boolean command. The photographs of the site provide information about the surrounding environment and details such as how the surface of “Radix” is assembled.
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Week Two
Reading: Hertzberger H. 2005. The in-between and The Habitable Space Between Things, from Lessons for Students in Architecture. Herzberger discusses how design should not be extreme in its functionality. Use your precedent study to explain how the pavilion allows for an appropriation of use. (100 words Maximum)
Herzberger argues that designers should try to give their design possibilities that encourage differentiated usage and thus make it more receptive to different situations. The “Radix� designed by Aires Mateus allows a diverse use by combining its form with content. The stretched-out corner of the pavilion hangs above a nearby river. Although there is no chairs or signs explicitly asking people to sit, the sense of privacy provided by the overhead architecture and the steps along the riverside create a communal space where people can sit and chat or simply relax and do a bit sightseeing.
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Week Two Isometric
Isometric drawing of Radix The isometric drawing mainly focuses on describing the form and content of Radix through line works. Unlike most of the other pavilions, a major part of the modelling for Radix was to take parts out from the box rather than building it up, which is quite impractical in the real construction process. From the photographs of the pavilion, I was able to recognise that the surface of the pavilion was cut into panels and assembled. Therefore, the ribs were modelled to suggest not only the structure but also how the surface was assembled in real constructing process. Through dashed lines, the curved inner structure of the pavilion is made available to audiences. Contrary to the outer shell, the inner space of the pavilion utilises a completely different language. There is no straight line or planar surface in the pavilion. The dome-like structure softens the clear thresholds created by the box and blur the boundary between the public and private space. A small part of the surrounding environment was also revealed in the drawing. The pavilion was located on a pier with steps along the river. As an installation, Radix did not simply cut off the way along the river, instead, it left the original linear passageway and integrated with it.
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Week Two Diagrams
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Exterior Structure
Sun diagram & Points of Interest
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* Sunlight Points of Interest
* Interior Structure
Primary Circulation Space
vertical horizontal
Thresholds
Circulation Diagram Stationary fast
Exterior Interior
slow
Circulation Diagram
Threshold Diagram
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Appendix
Isometric Collage
Isometric Collage for Radix The materiality and the content that the pavilion located in are emphasised in this “rendered” version of isometric drawing. The materiality of Radix shows a continuity with its structure. The exterior surface was made of steel while the interior was made of copper. In this case, the contrast between the sensations created by the two materials aligns with this form: it’s rough form outside, but smooth and soft inside. In addition, the sunlight reflected by the water would be projected onto the overhead dome, making it looks softer. The surrounding environment also significantly affect people’s understanding towards circulation and threshold in the space. For instance, most people would not walk into the water and hence it becomes a boundary for people’s circulation and also a soft threshold. Without explicitly asking people to sit, the overhead architecture and the steps along the riverside create a space that allows for dialogue and reflections found.
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Appendix
Diagram Prototype
Diagram prototypes is an effective way for one to start to put information from various aspects together. By printing out different layers of the pavilion and doodling on them, the structure of the pavilion and the way people might circulate in the area are connected. By using colours, line weight, dots, arrows, these diagrams also allow me to test different ways to express the idea and eventually simplify the diagram.
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