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Virtual Environments Darcy Zelenko Module 1 - Ideation, week 2
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Emerging Form Workshop
I tried to extrude from the original image of the Belousov-Zhabotinsky reaction using paper. Under the short time we were given to create the iteration combined with the intricacy of my pattern it was hard to produce.
Detail of iteration produced in class
This second iteration was created taking inspiration from the spiral pattern created by the BZ. To achieve it I rolled-up two pieces of paper at a time before sepatating them and placing one above the other with it’s ‘tail’ following along that of the bottom one. I repeated this process and placed them back to back to create a mirrored effect.
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Thie third iteration was created using a similar method. Eight pieces of paper were places together then cut on an angle before being paired-up, placed back to back and joined in the middle
This is the Rhino modelling of the second and third iteration, created by tracing one of my pictures then extruding up. I’m still working on creating the angled effect along each of the branches of the third iteration
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After the inspiring workshop I remade my first iteration when time wasn’t so crucial. The paper kept spiraling out on me so I managed to control it by using a few strips of double sided tape. I also cut slits in each spiral so they would fit together easier which also aided in keeping the structure together. I was then able to produce a proper Rhino model of the geometry and extrude it up like the others
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6 While experimenting with the concept of extrusion in regards to my pattern I was bought back to my primary school days when I created a type of Slinky made from paper. I created four with the intension of fixing one of the end down and then extruding the entire spiral by pulling up on the other end to create a sort of helix. The layout for this first experiment can be seen in the above image. I also wanted to see if I could get recreate some of the interferences I observed that occur in the BZ-reaction. To do this I simply moved the paper spirals closer together before repeating the same process
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I managed to produce some half-decent results, but without another pair of hands it was a little tricky to hold the lifting apparatus and take pictures at the same time. More experimentation may be recquired to produce some better results. I still managed to observe how the different spirals interacted with each other when they were separated and arranged close together
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Using the Copy and Rotate tools in rhino I created a form that looks similar to having mirrored the original form. However I think this way created something more unique.
This is the same extruded linework but it has been copied three times before being rotated 90 degrees after each copy
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I wanted to see if I could use Rhino to model the different groupings of the four spirals. I started off by tracing the original paper spiral using the Picture Frame tool before trying in Grasshopper to extrude it to create a helix. As it was after midnight when I was trying I think I should have another go at it after class today. But instead I created a helix shape using Grasshopper. To create a more organic-looking shape I decreased the amount of points that would make up the final curve. The image to the right is a plan view of three iterations of spiral groups: futhurest apart at the top, starting to touch in the middle and completely overlapping at the bottom. I was most interested in the bottom one.
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This is a close up view of the bottom set of spirals. Many overlaps and interferences can be seen here. While I haven’t been able to totally simulate the BZ-reaction digitally yet, using the extrude tool and giving my iterations freedom along the z-axis is a step in the right direction
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Response to Reading + Lecture 2 Ball, Philip (2012): Pattern Formation in Nature, AD: Architectural Design, Wiley, 82 (2), March, pp. 22-27 This reading was quite interesting and revevant to the work I’ve done so far in this subject. This is because Ball discusses the BZ reaction and helped round out my understanding of it. It helped me understand how the different wave fronts created in the BZ reaction behave when meeting one another. It’s very similar to the ripples in a pond once a stone has been thrown into it. Interestingly enough this matched up with my own observations. I was enformed about the autocatalytic process which dictates how the BZ reaction can continue to occur: relying on it’s products to continue to be able to make more of them. The article also used another example, The Giants Causeway in Ireland to illustrate another natural patterning process. Paul also used this as an example in the lecture. He compared it to Kowloon City in Hong Kong. If you look at both examples together you can see similarities in their form. However each example arose out of different circumstances: one from a natural process and another through laxed building codes and out of necessity. However both can be seen to behave as megastructures.
Described the formation process behind your found pattern? Are they specific moment of the transformation from your found pattern that you can emulate or stimulate in your emerging form model? Please see the beginning my week one journal for an explanation of the process behind my pattern. After taking some of my models further I believe I would like work on the concepts of spiraling, extrapolation and clustering for the second part of my emerging form using Rhino as my main modelling tool.
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Surface Tessellation 01 by Andrea Bugli This example of generative design using created using Rhinoscript creates a pattern of triangles along a given surface. It’s a relevant example to this project as it’s principles could be applied to my lantern design