Mccall eloyse 698656 studio air2 by Eloyse McCall

STUDIO AIR

journal

ELOYSE McCALL CAITLYN PARRY STUDIO SEMESTER 2 : 2016

contents

INTRODUCTION

PART A: CONCEPTUALISATION

A.1

A.2

A.3

A.4

A.5

A.6

REFERENCES

PART B: CRITERIA DESIGN

B.1

B.2

B.3

B.4

B.5

B.6

B.7

B.8

REFERENCES

introduction “NEVER DO ANYTHING BY HALVES IF YOU WANT TO GET AWAY WITH IT. BE OUTRAGEOUS. GO THE WHOLE HOG. MAKE SURE EVERYTHING YOU DO IS SO COMPLETELY CRAZY IT’S UNBELIEVABLE.” - Matilda (Matilda - Roald Dahl)

My name is Eloyse and I am currently in my third year studying architecture within the Bachelor of Environments at the University of Melbourne. I approach architecture from an artist’s perspective. I have a thorough background in analogue design and art creation, through mediums of drawing, painting, printmaking and stop-motion animation. I have long been fighting an urge to abandon architecture and commit myself to the study of fine art. But, I keep coming back and now can only see art and architecture as completely and utterly intertwined. I do not understand one without the other and I do not plan to pursue one without the other. I crave knowledge and am forever trying to be a sponge for the theory, literature and philosophical writings that underpin architecture. My inherent leniency towards speculative and conceptual design has fostered an excitement towards the seemingly limitless boundaries of parametrics. I have been both a sceptic and an embracer of digital and parametric design, and it is through Studio Air that I will challenge and push these preconceptions. My experience in digital programs has thus far been limited to AutoCAD and the Adobe Suite, with some basic knowledge of Rhino and Grasshopper. I was lucky enough to take the first Robotics Workshop with the Robot Lab at the University of Melbourne in January this year. This was my first foray into code, scripting and using software such as Grasshopper and Arduino to program ABB Robot Arms. I have and continue to view my study as a comprehensive understanding of space and how humans interact within it. I look forward to being able to create forms that confront these ideas of space and consequently, architecture.

FIG. 1 RELIEF LINO PRINT [OWN WORK]

FIG. 2 A RENDER FOR FINAL PROPOSAL: STUDIO EARTH [OWN WORK]

FIG. 3 CONCEPT SKETCH WORK: STUDIO EARTH [OWN WORK]

part A:

CONCEPTU

UALISATION

A.1 design futuring

CONCEPTUALISATION

“...it can no longer be assumed that we, en masse, have a future. If we do, it can only be by design against the still accelerating defuturing condition of unsustainability.” - Tony Fry1

Tony Fry, ‘Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice’, (Oxford: Berg, 2008), p. 1. CONCEPTUALISATION 9

precedent 01 SILK PAVILION

CNC DEPOSITED SILK FIBRE TEMPLATING & SILKWORM SWARM PRINT CONSTRUCTION 2013 | MASSACHUSETTS, USA MEDIATED MATTER GROUP @ MIT MEDIA LAB

Neri Oxman, ‘Templating Design for Biology and Biology for Design’, Architectural Design, 85. 5 (2015), p. 106. ‘Silk Pavilion’, (MIT Media Lab, 2016) <http://matter.media.mit.edu/environments/details/silk-pavillion> [accessed 8 August 2016] 4 Neri Oxman and others, ‘Towards Robotic Swarm Printing’, Architectural Design, 84. 3 (2014), p. 114. 5 Ibid. 6 Ibid. 7 Neri Oxman, ‘Structuring Materiality: Design Fabrication of Heterogeneous Materials’, Architectural Design, 80. 4 (2010), p. 80. 2

CONCEPTUALISATION

FIG. 1 VIEW THROUGH PAVILION APERTURES

Neri Oxman, Professor at the MIT Media Lab working with the Mediated Matter Group, experimented with robotically-fabricated organismic templating and computational design methods to facilitate a swarm printed structure.2 Based on the silkworm’s ability to spin a three-dimensional cocoon from one multi-property silk thread, the focus of the project was to analyse the silkworm’s behavioural patterns and silk thread properties to create a biologically engineered design.3 To construct the base scaffold-like structure, data from the species’ spinning patterns was used to generate a 3D digital fabrication path for a single non-woven silk thread.4 Silkworms were afterwards released onto this structure to complete fabrication through biological swarm construction.5 Both static and dynamic control factors; geometrical constraints and, light and heat, respectively, were employed to control the micro-construction of the silkworms.6 Ultimately, a design like this could not be achieved through analogue practices, anything attempted in comparison would be an inefficient and unsustainable use of resources. The crux of Oxman’s theories across all her work is an inversion of the traditional design sequence of form-finding-structure-finding-material, a change which is paramount to the survival of the construction and design industry.7Architects and researchers alike are pushing design ‘futuring’ by promoting a synthesis of digital and biological fabrication and shifting towards top-down templates and bottom-up assembly, as seen in projects such as the Silk Pavilion. Experiments like these are pathfinding new mediums of fabrication and urging a revolutionary reversal of the design process.

FIG. 2 VIEW THROUGH PAVILION APERTURES AS SILKWORMS SKIN THE STRUCTURE CONCEPTUALISATION 11

precedent 02 ICD/ITKE RESEARCH PAVILION

FIG. 3 INTERIOR PAVILION DETAIL

CORELESS FILAMENT WINDING BASED ON MORPHOLOGICAL PRINCIPLES OF AN ARTHOPOD EXOSKELETON 2012 | STUTTGART, GERMANY ICD/ITKE RESEARCH TEAM @ UNIVERSITY OF STUTTGART

The ICD/ITKE Research Team at the University of Stuttgart employed computational processes alongside robotic fabrication methods to pursue a biomimetic structure of natural fibres. Inspired by and based upon the exoskeleton of an arthropod, the intentions of the project were to investigate materially efficient and lightweight structures.8 Informing the form, material and robotic fabrication of the pavilion was; the interplay between the adaptive fibre orientation and the exoskeletal structure of the American lobster.9 This data was employed in the robotic coreless filament winding process which saw transparent glass-fibre surfaces and black carbon-fibre rovings interact to create the self-supporting shell form.10 Structures such as this pavilion are usually subject to a complicated mould casting process where materials, cost and labour are used inefficiently.11 The design of this pavilion has overcome these obstacles through an exploration into composite fabrication processes that make use of the self-forming capacity of fibres.12 Biomimetic design systems are becoming increasingly evident in today’s architecture, however, this needs to be pushed further as we are living in a time of ecological crisis where higher levels of efficiency and sustainability are wildly overdue. Innovative research into fibrous composites, that which are literally the ‘backbones’ of biological load-bearing structures, is enabling architecture to adopt the efficiency of nature’s structural systems, and augment design thinking and discourse.13 It is in projects like that of the ICD/ITKE Pavilion that architects are design ‘futuring’ through advancing fabrication, simulation and computational methods and in doing so are challenging our current materiality and construction methods.14 Jan Knippers and others, ‘ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2012: Coreless Filament Winding Based on the Morphological Principles of an Arthropod Exoskeleton’, Architectural Design, 85. 5 (2015), p. 53. 9 Ibid., 51. 10 Achim Menges & Jan Knippers, ‘Fibrous Tectonics’, Architectural Design, 85. 5 (2015), pp. 43. 11 Jan Knippers ‘ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion’, p. 50. 12 Ibid. 13 Achim Menges, ‘Fibrous Tectonics’, 42. 14 Ibid. 8

CONCEPTUALISATION

FIG. 4 PAVILION VIEW

CONCEPTUALISATION 13

A.2 design computation

CONCEPTUALISATION

“This is an age in which digitally informed design can actually produce a second nature.”15 - Rivka Oxman & Robert Oxman

Rivka Oxman & Robert Oxman, eds, ‘Theories of the Digital in Architecture’, (London; New York: Routledge, 2014), p. 8. 15

CONCEPTUALISATION 15

precedent 01 AADRL BEHAVIOURAL PRODUCTION | THE THREAD

AERIAL ROBOTICS SWARM CONSTRUCTION 2013-2015 | LONDON, UK VOID STUDENT TEAM @ AADRL @ AA SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE

Masters students of team: Void at the AA School of Architecture in London, investigated computer simulated flight pat in order to control and manipulate a robotics swarm construction of multicopters.16 The purpose of the experiment was robotics to weave thread through a choreographed spatial composition, controlling multicopters to act as a real-time c Lightweight nylon thread was the material deployed by the aerial robotics swarm to create the final tensile-structure in

The three-dimensional weave achieved in such a spatial layout would not be possible with conventional factory techniq any previous methodology possess the ability to adapt to varying spatial conditions in the same way as aerial robotics. note, the Thread is a fine example of Oxmans' ‘textile tectonics’ where the interplay of materiality and parametricism cu phenomena projected as material technologies’.20

Without computational generation, aerial robotics and experiments like these would cease to exist. As demonstrated b has allowed the possibilities of a synthesis between structure and space to be explored, and for the relationship betwe strengthen and challenge our current notions of architecture.21 It is this intersecting of computation, robotics and desig as put by Rivka and Robert Oxman, the advancement of a new medium that will reinforce and engage a ‘continuous lo thinking and making’.22

FIG. 1 FINAL INSTALLATION

th generation s to employ aerial construction swarm.17 nstallation.18

iques, nor would .19 To take a contrary ulminates in a ‘craft

by Void, computation een them to gn that encourages, ogic of design

Robert Stuart-Smith, ‘Behavioural Production: Autonomous Swarm-Constructed Architecture’, Architectural Design, 86. 2 (2016), p. 58. 17 ‘AADRL aerial robot thread construction – kokkugia’, (Kokkugia, 2016) <http://www.kokkugia.com/AADRLaerial-robot-thread-construction> [accessed 8 August 2016] 18 Robert Stuart-Smith, ‘Behavioural Production’, p. 58. 19 ‘AADRL aerial robot thread construction’, [accessed 8 August 2016] 20 Rivka Oxman & Robert Oxman, ‘Theories of the Digital in Architecture’, p. 5. 21 AADRL aerial robot thread construction’, [accessed 8 August 2016] 20 Rivka Oxman & Robert Oxman, ‘Theories of the Digital in Architecture’, p. 8. 16

CONCEPTUALISATION 17

FIG. 2 INSIDE INSTALLATION

Mark Fornes, ‘The Art of the Prototypical’, Architectural Design, 86. 2 (2016), pp. 60. Ibid. 25 ’14 Storefront | MARC FORNES & THEVERYMANY’, (Marc Fornes & THEVERYMANY, 2014) <https:// theverymany.com/14-storefront/> [accessed 8 August 2016] 26 Mark Fornes, ‘The Art of the Prototypical’, pp. 61. 27 Patrik Schumacher, ‘Parametricism 2.0: Gearing Up to Impact the Global Built Environment’, Architectural Design, 86. 2, (2016),CONCEPTUALISATION pp.14. 18 28 Yehuda E. Kalay, Architecture’s New Media: Principles, Theories, and Methods of Computer-Aided Design (Cambridge: MIT Press, 2004), p. 7. 23 24

precedent 02 SITUATION ROOM | STOREFRONT FOR ART & ARCHITECTURE FIG. 3 CONCEPT DIAGRAM

FIG. 4 VIEW FROM STOREFRONT

BOOLEAN OPERATIONS | DOUBLE CURVATURE PROTOTYPING 2014 | NEW YORK, NY MARC FORNES | THEVERYMANY Marc Fornes and his New York-based studio THEVERYMANY, explore the potential of coding and computational design through methods of prototyping to arrive at various art and architectural installations.23 The prototypes, including Situation Room are intended to evoke a pleasurable atmosphere and spatial experience, and are all tested at 1:1 scale.24 Boolean operational algorithms were employed to generate the double curvature shell structure consisting of twenty light-weight ultra-thin spheres.25 The structural performance of the installation is augmented by its doubly curved surfaces, based on the linear relationship between structural capability and double curvature.26 Such precision and operational logic in an experimental context would not be feasible without computation; computation has the ability to foster the desired element of surprise and creativity whilst simultaneously cultivating accuracy and viability. As proposed by Patrik Schumacher, Fornes’ work illustrates how Parametricism drives geometry to levels of complexity and variation that could not be preconceived in any other medium.27 Fornes’ prototypical work with THEVERYMANY, working at 1:1 scale and continuously testing and modifying models both in and outside of the digital realm, are a testimony to a craftsmanship that, according to Yehuda Kalay, is mostly absent from the computational world.28 CONCEPTUALISATION 19

A.3 composition / generation

CONCEPTUALISATION

“There’s the dance between what’s possible and what’s imagined, and that to me is where the art lies, in knowing how to dance that dance.” - Natasha Johns-Messenger

CONCEPTUALISATION 21

precedent 01 BRITISH PAVILION / SEED CATHEDRAL

MATHEMATICAL ALGORITHMS & INTERACTIVE SOFTWARE IN NON-GENERATIVE DESIGN 2010 | SHANGHAI EXPO, CHINA HEATHERWICK STUDIO

FIG. 1 FRONT ELEVATION OF PAVILION

CONCEPTUALISATION

Heatherwick Studio engaged with mathematical algorithms through the medium of interactive software to facilitate the realisation of a predetermined design.29 The Optimisation Design team at Adams Kara Taylor (AKT) were instrumental in informing the early stages of the pavilion’s structural design process by developing project-specific software.30 The final proposal did not stray far from its conceptual beginnings, and thus did not exploit the generative capabilities of computational design, rather, it employed computation as a means of composition. The pavilion is constructed of 60,000 identical rods, which protrude out from a timber frame ‘box’ which conceals an undulating, curved space, contrary to the linearity of the rods.31 ‘Seeds’ are placed on the tips of the rods, as part of a conceptual nod to nature and the pavilion as a ‘cathedral to seeds’.32

FIG. 2 CLOSE UP OF SPIKE DISTRIBUTION

A multiplicity of spike distribution and structural studies were conducted through computational methods, and the results of this process can be considered successful when reflecting on design intention and spatial experience of the space.33 However, in the shift towards Parametricism and computational design, to preconceive a structure and then force it through a generative modelling system feels inelegant and awkward. Heatherwick Studio exploited computation to realise their conceptual design intention in a literal sense, which nonetheless, brings speculation to the notion of composition and whether it has a place in the future of computational design.

Panagiotis Michalatos and others, ‘Intuitive Material Distributions’, Architectural Design, 81. 4 (2011), pp.67. Ibid. 31 ‘UK Pavilion | Heatherwick Studio’, (Heatherwick Studio, 2010) <http://www.heatherwick.com/uk-pavilion/> [accessed 8 August 2016] 32 Ibid. 33 Panagiotis Michalatos, ‘Intuitive Material Distributions’, pp.68. 29

CONCEPTUALISATION 23

precedent 02 ICD/ITKE RESEARCH PAVILION EMBEDDING PHYSICAL PROPERTIES IN COMPUTATION DESIGN PROCESSES & AN INVESTIGATION INTO ELASTIC BENDING 2010 | STUTTGART, GERMANY ICD/ITKE RESEARCH TEAM @ UNIVERSITY OF STUTTGART

The ICD/ITKE Research Team explored computational design, simulation and methods of robotic fabrication to both push and pursue bending-active structures.34 The project comprehensively investigates materiality, specifically the behaviour of elastic bending and its structural capabilities.35 The overall form of the pavilion is computed through the self-equilibrating system of bent and tensioned segments of wooden lamella.36 Explicitly, the process involved embedding system-specific physical properties and material behaviour, adapting these to finite element methods (FEMs) for simulations, deploying a six-axis industrial robot for fabrication, and letting the behavioural tendencies of the planar plywood determine its own structural morphology onsite.37 As put by Brady Peters, when computation and design are no longer discussed as separate entities and can become one, digital methods can finally establish themselves in the realm of generative design.38 This project demonstrates the fusion of computation and design, at such a high level where the innate properties of material inform design, structure and final form. The computation generative design method continually proves itself to be in the vanguard of architectural efficiency, innovation and technique, and rightfully so, it will continue to push industry away from compositional design in the revolutionary move towards bottom-up form-finding. 24

CONCEPTUALISATION

FIG. 3 INTERIOR PAVILION VIEW

FIG. 4 PAVILION FRONT ELEVATION VIEW

FIG. 5 (ABOVE LEFT) STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS MODELS FIG. 6 (ABOVE RIGHT) FEM SIMULATION & 3D COMPUTATIONAL DETAILING

Achim Menges and others, ‘Material Behaviour: Embedding Physical Properties in Computational Design Processes’, Architectural Design, 82. 2 (2012), pp. 44. 35 Ibid., 45. 36 Achim Menges, ‘Computational Material Culture’, Architectural Design, 86. 2 (2016), pp. 77. 37 Achim Menges,’Material Behaviour’, p 46. 38 Brady Peters, ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, CONCEPTUALISATION 25 Architectural Design, 83. 2 (2013), pp. 12. 34

CONCEPTUALISATION

CONCEPTUALISATION 27

A.4 conclusion

Through a theoretical exploration of generative design processes, I have lingered upon the potential of material-finding-form approaches, as well as speculative prototypical work that challenges geometry. I have no interest in getting caught up in my own preconceived designs, rather I want to discover and create through algorithmic processes that will take my ideas further than my mind ever could. I want to leave behind a compositional method of thinking, and let generative computational systems progress my creative curiosity. I am concerned with the efficient and sustainable use of materials, as well as being attracted to the relatively unexplored abilities of varying material properties. I believe to undertake the practice of mindful design, is to be conscious and aware of your materials and their capabilities, and to let their innate properties guide your designs. My unwavering devotion to speculative design has sparked a desire to employ computational methods to push geometrical form and experiment with radical concepts and narratives within my work. If possible, I would like to research and investigate the abilities of algorithmic processes to craft their own narratives through form generation. Design speculation is widely dismissed as a redundant and illusory field, however, I challenge these notions, and as declared by Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby: speculative design is â&#x20AC;&#x153;a catalyst for collectively redefining our relationship to reality."39

CONCEPTUALISATION

Anthony Dunne & Fiona Raby, Speculative Everything: Design Fiction, and Social Dreaming (Cambrdige: MIT Press, 2013), p.2.

A.5 learning outcomes

My understanding and opinion on computational design practice has changed immensely since beginning precedent research. As a previous sceptic of Parametricism, believing it to be a field devoid of human creativity and craftsmanship, I have a newfound appreciation for its ability to redefine architecture and design practice. My previous works all grew from a compositional design process where I employed analogue techniques to translate concept into realisation. Repeatedly in my work, I have tirelessly experimented with my yearning for complex and conceptual geometry by hand drawing and via CAD software. It was precisely a lack of parametric and algorithmic software skills that was failing me and hindering my designs from reaching completion. I look forward to exploring the methodology that my speculative conceptual mind has been craving.

CONCEPTUALISATION 29

METABALL & T

LOFTING CURVES

SURFACE BOX MORPH

BODY SURFACE

A.6 appendix

ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES 30

CONCEPTUALISATION

TRIANGULATION ALGORITHMS

BODY SURFACE

SURFACE BOX MORPH

CONCEPTUALISATION 31

reference list ‘AADRL aerial robot thread construction – kokkugia’, (Kokkugia, 2016) <http://www.kokkugia.com/AADRL-aerialrobot-thread-construction> [accessed 8 August 2016] Achim Menges, ‘Computational Material Culture’, Architectural Design, 86. 2 (2016), pp. 76-83. Achim Menges & Jan Knippers, ‘Fibrous Tectonics’, Architectural Design, 85. 5 (2015), pp. 40-47. Achim Menges and others, ‘Material Behaviour: Embedding Physical Properties in Computational Design Processes’, Architectural Design, 82. 2 (2012), pp. 44-51. Brady Peters, ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, Architectural Design, 83. 2 (2013), pp. 8-15. Jan Knippers and others, ‘ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2012: Coreless Filament Winding Based on the Morphological Principles of an Arthropod Exoskeleton’, Architectural Design, 85. 5 (2015), pp. 48-53. Neri Oxman, ‘Structuring Materiality: Design Fabrication of Heterogeneous Materials’, Architectural Design, 80. 4 (2010), pp. 78-85. Neri Oxman, ‘Templating Design for Biology and Biology for Design’, Architectural Design, 85. 5 (2015), pp. 100-107 Mark Fornes, ‘The Art of the Prototypical’, Architectural Design, 86. 2 (2016), pp. 60-67. Panagiotis Michalatos and others, ‘Intuitive Material Distributions’, Architectural Design, 81. 4 (2011), pp. 66-69. Patrik Schumacher, ‘Parametricism 2.0: Gearing Up to Impact the Global Built Environment’, Architectural Design, 86. 2, (2016), pp. 8-17. Rivka Oxman & Robert Oxman, eds, Theories of the Digital in Architecture (London; New York: Routledge, 2014), pp. 1-10. Robert Stuart-Smith, ‘Behavioural Production: Autonomous Swarm-Constructed Architecture’, Architectural Design, 86. 2 (2016), pp. 54-59. ‘Silk Pavilion’, (MIT Media Lab, 2016) <http://matter.media.mit.edu/environments/details/silk-pavillion> [accessed 8 August 2016] Tony Fry, Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg, 2008), pp. 1-16. ‘UK Pavilion | Heatherwick Studio’, (Heatherwick Studio, 2010) <http://www.heatherwick.com/uk-pavilion/> [accessed 8 August 2016] Yehuda E. Kalay, Architecture’s New Media: Principles, Theories, and Methods of Computer-Aided Design (Cambridge: MIT Press, 2004), p. 7. ’14 Storefront | MARC FORNES & THEVERYMANY’, (Marc Fornes & THEVERYMANY, 2014) <https://theverymany. com/14-storefront/> [accessed 8 August 2016] 32

CONCEPTUALISATION

figure list A.1 Fig.1 Steven Keating, 2013, photograph, <http://matter.media.mit.edu/environments/details/silk-pavillion#prettyPhoto[imag es]/6/> [accessed 8 August, 2016] Fig.2 Steven Keating, 2013, photograph, < http://matter.media.mit.edu/environments/details/silk-pavillion#prettyPhoto[imag es]/5/> [accessed 8 August, 2016] Fig.3 Project Documentation ICD/ITKE, 2012, photograph, <http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=8807> [accessed 8 August, 2016] Fig.4 Roland Halbe, 2012, photograph, <http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=8807> [accessed 8 August, 2016] A.2 Fig.1 Unknown, photograph, <http://www.kokkugia.com/AADRL-aerial-robot-thread-construction> [accessed 8 August, 2016] Fig.2 & Fig. 4 Miguel de Guzmán, 2014, photograph, <http://imagensubliminal.com/situation-room-ny/?lang=es> [accessed 8 August, 2016] Fig.3 Marc Fornes & THEVERYMANY, 2014, digital image, <https://theverymany.com/14-storefront/> [accessed 8 August, 2016] A.3 Fig.1 Iwan Baan, 2010, photograph, <http://www.heatherwick.com/uk-pavilion/> [accessed 8 August, 2016] Fig.2 Hufton + Crow, photograph, from ‘Intuitive Material Distributions’, Architectural Design, 81. 4 (2011), p. 66. Fig.3-6 Various, photographs and digital images, from ‘Material Behaviour: Embedding Physical Properties in Computational Design Processes’, Architectural Design, 82. 2 (2012), pp. 44-51.

CONCEPTUALISATION 33

part B: CRITERI

CRITERIA DESIGN

A DESIGN

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.1 research field: STRIPS & FOLDING

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Strips and foldingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; techniques pose seemingly endless possibilities for architectural design. They embrace curvature with ease and have the ability to transform materiality, to create rigidity and flexibility out of materials that usually hold oppositional characteristics. Strips allow for intricate interwoven compositions and welcome both differential and homogeneous configurations. The simple fold or bend of an element gives the illusion of a shift in dimensional realities, from two to three dimensions; a beauty unique to these techniques. Despite having considerable transformable control over materials, the abilities of strips and folding are highly dependent on the innate characteristics of the material, and this can sometimes be a limitation of these techniques.

CRITERIA DESIGN

FIGURE 1. OFFICE D'A 1998 MOMA FABRICATIONS FIGURE 2. OFFICE D'A 1998 MOMA FABRICATIONS

CRITERIA DESIGN

FIGURE 3. LOOP_3 BOLOGNA INSTALLATION

Loop_3 is an installation project designed and constructed by the Loop_3 Design Team from the Faculty of Engineering at the Universita di Bologna, for the first Architectural Biennale of Thessaloniki.1 The structure exemplifies the ability of planar strip elements to form voluptuous curvature as a selfsupporting structure. The core plywood structure and tensioned lycra skin were designed using complex mathematical trigonometric functions that would allow for the smooth curve aesthetic and spatiality.2 Both the skin and structure become one through the elegant twists and bends of the strip morphology, epitomising the structural and aesthetic capabilities of strip techniques. 1 'Loop_3', (Co-de-It), <http://www.co-de-it.com/wordpress/ loop_3.html/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 2 Ibid.

FIGURE 4. LOOP_3 BOLOGNA INSTALLATION 38

CRITERIA DESIGN

The 1998 MoMa Fabrications by Office dA are folded steel structures that push an optical illusionary aesthetic and question the boundaries of material properties. As the complex technique of folding demands, comprehensive prototyping was involved in the conception of their steel designs.1 The forms are perceived differently depending on the viewpoint, exploiting laws of optics and visual distortion.2 Steel plates are folded, stretched and grafted to act as a skin opposed to the traditional ‘structural’ system.3 The resulting structure holds beauty in the intricacies of its joints, component patternation and most expressively, its folding profile.

1 ‘MoMa Fabrications 1998, New York Installations’, <http://www.nadaaa.com/#/projects/fabrications/>, [accessed 5 September, 2016]. 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid.

FIGURE 5. OFFICE D'A 1998 MOMA FABRICATIONS

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.2 case study 1.0: SEROUSSI PAVILION - BIOTHING FIGURE 6, 7, 8. SEROUSSI PAVILION

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.2 matrix of iterations iteration 1

iteration 2

DIV CRV (1) SEGMENTS= 50

CIRC RADIUS = 0.5

iteration 3

species 1 basic parameters DIV CRV (2) SEGMENTS = 48

species 2 graph mapper typology CONIC

GAUSSIAN

LINEAR

species 3 point charges NEW POINTS, CH = 50, POINTS FURTHER OUT + BELOW

NEW POINTS, ON INSIDE

NEW POINTS, ALONG CURVES

species 4 input geometry

3 CIRCLES WITHIN EACHOTHER

OVERLAPPING PENTAGONS IN DECREASING SIZE

2 RECTANGLES WITHIN EACH OTHER

species 5 project to surface LOFTED SRF 42

CRITERIA DESIGN

LOFTED SRF

iteration 4

FLINE SAMPLES = 300

PARABOLA

FEWER POINTS, FURTHER OUT

CYLINDRICAL SRF (LOFTED FROM 2 CRVS)

FLAT V SRF

iteration 5

DIV CRV (3) SEGMENTS & RANGE STEPS = 50

PERLIN

iteration 6

'B' OF A X B = -7.6

POWER

<SAME POINTS, CH = -15

MORE POINTS, MOVED INTO CENTRE

SRF LOFTED FROM 2 CRVS

SRF LOFTED FROM 3 CRVS

SPHERE

CONE CRITERIA DESIGN

b.2 most SUCCESSFUL iterations

SELECTION CRITERIA: FLEXIBILITY DYNAMISM/MOVEMENT ELEGANCE

THIS ITERATION APPEARS MORE STATIC RATHER THAN DYNAMIC, HOWEVER, THE PATTERN GENERATED HOLDS A LOT OF VISUAL INTEREST AND ELEGANCE.

SPECIES 1 ITERATION 4

IT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE DEVELOPED INTO AN INTRICATE WOVEN STRIP GARMENT, PERHAPS CREATING A CUPPING FORM FOR PLACEMENT OVER THE BREAST OR OTHER CURVES/ ANGLES OF THE BODY, E.G. HIP

THIS ITERATION HAS ELEMENTS OF ALL 3 CRITERIA, WITH FLEXIBILITY IN THE MOVEMENT OF THE STRIPS AND ELEGANCE IN THE FINAL COMPOSITION. THE SHAPE OF THE NODES HOLDS A LOT OF VISUAL INTEREST, THEY AREN'T DISSIMILAR IN SHAPE AND LOOK TO A WOMAN'S BREAST. PERHAPS THEY COULD FORM AN UNDERGARMENT THAT TAKES THE SHAPE OF THE WEARER'S CURVES.

SPECIES 2 ITERATION 3

CRITERIA DESIGN

THIS ITERATION RANKS HIGHLY IN ALL THREE OF MY CRITERIA. IT CLEARLY DEMONSTRATES DYNAMISM, WHICH I THINK IS ITS MOST REDEEMING QUALITY. FLEXIBILITY IS TIGHTLY CONCERNED WITH ITS POTENTIAL FOR MOVEMENT AND THE ELEGANCE OF THE GENTLY DRAPING 'STRIPS'. PERHAPS EACH JELLYFISH-LIKE COMPONENT COULD BE CONNECTED TO CREATE A LARGER GARMENT WITH POCKETS OF TRANSPARENCY, OR THE COMPONENTS COULD REMAIN SINGULAR, AND CAP A SHOULDER FOR EXAMPLE.

SPECIES 4 ITERATION 6

THIS ITERATION CAN APPEAR STATIC OR PERHAPS ALL COMPONENTS ARE CONTINUOUSLY ROTATING IN A SPHERE, ALWAYS MOVING. THE FLEXIBILITY OF THIS ITERATION STANDS OUT MOST TO ME, THE STRETCHING OF THE NODES/COMPONENTS IN AN EFFORT TO COMPLETE THE ELEGANT SPHERE IS VISUALLY APPEALING. AS A GARMENT, I CAN IMAGINE SOMETHING SIMILAR TO SP.1.I.4, A WOVEN STRIP GARMENT THAT PERHAPS TAKES ONLY HALF THIS SPHERICAL SHAPE TO MOULD TO THE BODY'S CURVES.

SPECIES 5 ITERATION 5

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.3 reverse engineering: CURVED FOL

FIGURE 9 . CURVED FOLDING PAVILION 46

CRITERIA DESIGN

LDING PAVILION - EPFL The Curved Folding Pavilion, 2012, was designed and constructed by students Danny Te Kloese and Mathieu Delacretaz in Philipp Eversmann and Paul Ehret’s ‘In Silico Building’ Studio at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL).1 The pavilion’s design was generated through rigorous material studies and digital parametric modelling; consisting of 1mm folded aluminium components that make up two intersecting curved structures.2 The design intent of the Curved Folding Pavilion revolves around the structure and teachings of the In Silico Building Studio. Following the chronology of the studio, the pavilion grew from an in-depth study of metal, in its purest form. A comprehensive exploration was conducted into the change of state of the material, how it can be fabricated and how far it can be pushed until it reaches its limit. The next stage of the design process was to involve ‘the machine’ in ‘automated haute couture’.3 The focus was on shifting the notion of mass production to mass customisation, where components can be fabricated ‘quasi-different’, setting up a new dialogue between the material and the machine.4 The studio then moved on to constructing digital design systems that would feed machines the appropriate data, using programs such as Grasshopper. The studio adamantly employed the use of one coherent parametric model, that could constantly change and ‘behave like foam’.5 These investigations of the studio would culminate in developing a new language, where industry standards can be removed and materials can directly interact with the machine.6 This new language stimulates a new understanding of space and always brings the designer back to the raw material. The studio tries to work without a preconceived image of the end product, attempting to invert industry practice of producing images beforehand. The Curved Folding Pavilion embodies the In Silico ‘philosophy’ of taking the homogeneity of one material to the extreme.7 Extensive prototyping was employed in looking at the possibilities of the machine and how folding can be realised in metal. The machine usually cuts metal with an abrasive sand and water procedure on high pressure. Te Kloese and Delacretaz, however, experimented by taking the sand out of this procedure, which resulted in the machine being unable to completely cut through the metal, leaving a crease for them to fold.8 The homogeneous character of the pavilion is illustrated not only through its components, but also in their joints. As there isn’t need to introduce another material or object when using metal, the pavilion exploited this material quality and created teeth and ‘male and female joints’ on each component to connect them together with simplicity.9 The pavilion encapsulates the In Silico Building Studio’s ethos and is an exemplar of bottom-up parametric and material driven design. 1 'CURVED FOLDING', (Eversmann Studio, 2011)<http://www.eversmann.fr/CURVED-FOLDING/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 2 'In Silico Building', (In Silico Building, 2016) <https://insilicobuilding.wordpress.com/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 3 'Material Matters', (EPFL, 2012) <https://vimeo.com/49018447/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 4 Ibid. 5 Ibid. 6 Ibid. 7 Ibid. 8 Ibid. 9 Ibid. CRITERIA DESIGN

8 unique components fold angle (1) 162°

obtuse

(2) 152° (3) 140° (4) 124° (5) 108° (6) 92° (7) 76° (8) 60°

CRITERIA DESIGN

acute

The pavilion consists of two intersecting curved folding structures. I deciphered 8 unique components that were repeated in the same pattern to create the curved surface. Each component was an irregular shape that fit together with teeth and male and female joints. The fold line of the components was curved and this is what posed the challenge. To fold a geometric pattern where all edges and folds are linear is much easier to compute and to compute in a developable way.

FIGURE 10 . CURVED FOLDING PAVILION

FIGURE 11 . CURVED FOLDING PAVILION

CRITERIA DESIGN

N.B. KingKong was used as i specifically generates curved rather than using Kangaroo’s capabilities alone, which are geometric/linear patterns on

REVERSE ENGINEERING DIAGRAMMATIC PROCESS

STEP 01 Decipher pattern of components

RHINO 50

CRITERIA DESIGN

For each of the (8) individual components:

STEP 02

STE

Divide curves to create ‘rulers’ (polylines) from fold line to edge lines

Kon a) s rule b) s - ed s -m OR - va

GRASSHOPPER

d folding,

s folding suited to nly

URVES

RULERS

EP 03

ngMesh: set curves and ers set curves as: E dge set fold lines as: mountain M

alley

STEP 04

STEP 05

set anchor points

set fold angle geometry automatically bakes at change of angle

> KANGAROO > KINGKONG CRITERIA DESIGN

This definition was successful in that it created the curved fold components, but it also smoothes out and changes the edge curves, meaning I would no longer have components that fit together. I could manually fit them together with control points but this would be a redundant non-parametric process. After experimenting with other methods i.e. box morphing and simiply lofting the curves, I didn't yield more successful results, so I decided I was content with the creation of the curved folds and moved onto the next stage.

Curved folded components using KingKong 52

CRITERIA DESIGN

Components created through lofting - doesn't change edges and is therefore successful, however it doesn't work with all 8 components, as seen here.

Joining components with control points - changes angle/shapes.

Lofted components

CRITERIA DESIGN

Box morph attempt using one component as the morphed geometry.

CRITERIA DESIGN

Testing out geometric folding simulation in Grasshopper with simple geometric patterns. Cannot plugin curved patterns.

CRITERIA DESIGN

Testing out geometric folding simulation in Grasshopper with simple geometric patterns again.

Changing axes

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.4 matrix of iterations iteration 1

iteration 2

iteration 3

species 1 basic parameters ANGLE = 120

DIV CRV SEGMENTS= 10

DIV CRV SEGMENTS

DIV CRV SEGMENTS= 87

DIV CRV SEGMENTS= 60

DIV CRV SEGMENTS=

ANGLE= 15

ANGLE= 35

ANGLE= 65

+ 4TH CURVE: E, M, M, E

+5TH CURVE: E, V, M, V, E

KEEP CURVE #: E, M,

CIRCULAR CURVES

3 IRREGULAR CURVES, SIMILAR TO ORIGINAL

PAISLEY CURVES

species 2 curve division

species 3 fold angle

species 4 curve number + fold pattern

species 5 input geometry

CRITERIA DESIGN

NB. DEFINITION OFTEN DOES 'INVERSE' OF PARAMETER SPECIFIED, E.G. WILL DO VALLEY FOLD WHEN MOUNTAIN IS SPECIFIED, AN OBTUSE ANGLE WILL BE ITS ACUTE ANGLE INSTEAD ETC.

iteration 4

iteration 5

= 30

FOLD TYPE = MOUNTAIN

FOLD ANGLE = MOUNTAIN, ANGLE = 90

= 15

DIV CRV SEGMENTS= 5

DIV CRV SEGMENTS= 35

ANGLE= 95

ANGLE= 150

KEEP CURVE #: E, M, M, M, E

+6TH+7TH CURVE: E, M, V, M, V, M, E

ARCS INVERSE TO EACHOTHER

2 TRIANGULAR CURVES MAKING OPEN DIAMOND

IRREGULAR CURVE IN BETWEEN

W TRIANGULAR CURVE IN BETWEEN

V, M, E

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.4 matrix of iterations iteration 1

iteration 2

iteration 3

species 6 graph mapper typology

BEZIER

CONIC

GAUSSIAN

THRESHOLD= 36

THRESHOLD= 10

THRESHOLD

POINT ATTRACTOR TO MIDDLE OF FOLD

INCREASE POINT ATTRACTION

SRF DOMAIN

SRF DOMAIN= 34 U, 27 V

MAGNITUDE TO 56

P.A. MAGNIT

KANGAROO RECIPROCAL @ 40 DEGREES

KANGAROO RECIPROCAL @ DEFAULT ANGLE

MAKE MESH

PIPE LINES RADIUS 0.05

> WB EXTRA > PIPE LINES

WB SIERPINSKI CARPET, DIST= 1.5, INSET TYPE= 1

WB INNER P SUBDIVISION

species 7 metaball

species 8 panelling

species 9 strip typology

species 10 weaverbird

CRITERIA DESIGN

WB STELLATE/CUMULATION, DIST= 1

iteration 4

iteration 5

PARABOLA

SINC

D= 60

THRESHOLD= 139

THRESHOLD= 43, SRF DIV UV= 14

N= 15 U 15 V

POINT ATTRACTOR HIGHER UP FOLD

KEEP P.A. MAGNITUDE

TUDE= 18

P.A. MAGNITUDE= 1

SRF DOMAIN= 20 U 15 V

H > TRIANGULATE MESH

CONTOUR AND EXTRUDE 0.25 Z AXIS

INTERPOLATE CURVE, EXTRUDE 0.25 Z AXIS

WB CATMULL CLARK SMOOTH EDGES

WB BEVEL VERTICES

ACT POLYLINES FROM FACES S RADIUS 0.05

POLYGONS N

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.4 most SUCCESSFUL iterations

SELECTION CRITERIA: FLEXIBILITY DYNAMISM/MOVEMENT ELEGANCE

THIS ITERATION RANKS HIGHLY IN ALL 3 CRITERIA. IT IS FLEXIBILE, APPEARS DYNAMIC WITH MUCH POTENTIAL FOR MOVEMENT, AND HAS AN ELEGANT COMPOSITION. I CAN IMAGINE LOTS OF THIN STRIPS WOVEN TOGETHER AT THE ENDS TO CREATE A SLING-LIKE GARMENT.

SPECIES 7 ITERATION 2

SPECIES 8 ITE

THIS ITERATION STANDS OUT TO ME IN TERMS OF POTENTIAL FOR FLEXIBILITY AND ELEGANCE IN ITS PATTERN. IT GIVES THE IMPRESSION OF MORE OF A PROTECTIVE GARMENT, A SHIELD-LIKE UNDERGARMENT PERHAPS.

SPECIES 9 ITERATION 3 62

CRITERIA DESIGN

THIS ITERATIO FAVOURITE. IT SO MUCH ELEG THE VARYING OF THE STRIPS THE SLIGHT P POLYGONS WH STRIPS ARE LE IT GIVES THE I IT CAN BE PUL PUSHED, TWIS DEFORMED. A DRESS COMES

ERATION 1

ON IS MY T HOLDS GANCE IN DENSITIES S AND EEK OF HERE THE EAST DENSE. IMPRESSION LLED, AND STED AND DRAPING S TO MIND.

THE VARYING DENSITIES OF THE CURVES GIVE OFF A BLUR AND THE IMPRESSION OF MOVEMENT. THE CURVACEOUS QUALITY OF THE ITERATION ADDS TO THIS IDEA OF MOVEMENT AND ESPECIALLY FLEXIBILITY. SIMILARLY TO SP.7.I.2, I CAN IMAGINE MANY STRIPS ATTACHED AT THE ENDS, FORMING A FLEXIBLE GARMENT THAT WORKS WITH THE CONTOURS OF THE BODY.

SPECIES 9 ITERATION 5 THIS ITERATION IS ELEGANT IN ITS GEOMETRIC PROTRUDING PATTERN AND FLEXIBLE/DYNAMIC IN ITS UNDERLYING SHAPE. I SEE THIS AS BEING A PROTECTIVE GARMENT AS WELL AS SP.9.1.3., EXCEPT IT ACTUALLY PROTRUDES SHARP-LOOKING SPIKES. THIS HAS THE POTENTIAL TO BE A FOLDED GARMENT, INTERESTINGLY, ALTHOUGH MY CASE STUDY WAS ON FOLDING, MOST OF MY FAVOURED ITERATIONS HAVE TURNED INTO STRIP GARMENTS.

SPECIES 10 ITERATION 1 CRITERIA DESIGN

b.5 technique: prototypes

CRITERIA DESIGN

From my Case Study 2.0, I decided I didn't want to prototype with the same type of folds, i.e. curved, as my interest lies in deployable folding structures consisting of linear/geometric fold patterns. I'm particularly intrigued by deployable folding structures and their ability to be constructed from only one component, which greatly simplifies connection joints and promotes sustainability. Through iterating my case study, I ended up with many beautiful structures that would be constructed using strip techniques rather than folding techniques, and I became quite interested in strip garments. However, I felt my case study didn't allow much room for me to explore the type of folding I'm interested in, so it was decided my prototypes would focus on folding, with potential for strip techniques later on. After experimenting and simulating various geometric folding patterns, I decided to fabricate simple folding patterns first that I knew had deployable qualities about them. I am most interested in the movement and ability of the garment to expand and contract with the body, so it was important that I begin making in the physical world, as I felt this would facilitate my ability to generate a pattern specific to the body and to the transformable qualities I wanted it to have.

CRITERIA DESIGN

PROTOTYPE 1.0

CRITERIA DESIGN

I first prototype using 0.6mm cl polypropylene a not successful. The material CA but it was diffic the material to crease when th the unfolded m was pulling it in direction. I spec that it was more hold its folds w entire structure together - so I t using bulldog c cloth tape to ho together, but it to be difficult. As I was after a structure that w hold a crease a expand and con with ease - I kn prototypes wou perform the wa them to. So, I fabricated patterns in 250 on a smaller sc fold lines were differently as I r printed them in the first prototy

ed lear and it was

PROTOTYPE 2.0

AN fold, cult for hold a he rest of material n the other culated re likely to when the e was folded tried first clips and old folds still proved

a flexible would really and both ntract new these uld not ay I wanted

d the same 0GSM card, cale. Some printed realised I had ncorrectly in ypes.

CRITERIA DESIGN

POLYPROPYLENE PROTOTYPE 1.0 (0.6MM CLEAR POLYPROPYLENE)

POLYPROPYLENE PROTOTYPE 2.0 (0.6MM CLEAR POLYPROPYLENE)

CRITERIA DESIGN

POLYPROPYLENE PATTERN BLUE = VALLEY FOLD PURPLE = MOUNTAIN FOLD

CARD PATTERN PURPLE = VALLEY FOLD BLUE = MOUNTAIN FOLD

PROTOTYPE 1.0

PROTOTYPE 2.0

CRITERIA DESIGN

moment of weakness

Card did prove easier to fold, however it was still proving difficult. It was then pointed out to me that I had fabricated the folds incorrectly, and that was why I was still having difficult folding despite the thinner material (as can be seen in the coming pages). Using polypropylene could now potentially work if the folds were fabricated correctly.

fabrication problem:

as laser cutting can only accurately cut on one side of the sheet, I used regular etch and dash etch to differentiate the folds - using an etched dash didnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t properly create the moment of weakness where the valley folds meet, making it very difficult to fold properly

solution:

- for next time: use a dash cut instead of etch - for now: use a blade on the back of the sheet over the valley folds to help them snap fold in CRITERIA DESIGN

relaxed state - outside of structure

dynamic fold movement transition contraction > expansion 72

CRITERIA DESIGN

relaxed state - inside of structure

CRITERIA DESIGN

CARD PROTOTYPE 2.0 (250GSM IVORY CARD)

relaxed state - outside of structure

dynamic fold movement transition

contraction > expansion, twisting/deformation 74

CRITERIA DESIGN

relaxed state - inside of structure

CRITERIA DESIGN

b.6 technique: proposal

I've interpreted the brief as allocating the human body as site, with design concept taking influence from Merri Creek and CERES. Merri Creek and CERES promote a sustainable, healthy environment for those to visit and experience. From this, I've abstracted the notion of comfort. My design concept revolves around the idea of comfort vs discomfort. Deployable folding structures have the ability to both expand and contract. I'm imagining a bodice that will expand with the body's movement and thus react to changes in shape and size. However, it will also have the ability to contract, constrict and limit the body, therefore creating discomfort. This is more interesting to me as it is more difficult to engineer a force on a closed folded garment that causes it to contract rather than expand. From my reverse engineering case study, I decided I was only taking the concept of folding. I don't want curved folds, I'm interested in geometric patterns, and I don't want multiple components. I want to exploit the ability of folding to be constructed of only one component with beauty and intricacy in the folding and the surface movement it generates.

CRITERIA DESIGN

MOVING FORWARD + INTERIM FEEDBACK Originally, in terms of moving into the next stage, I wanted to: 1. engineer a differential/variable folding pattern where different parts of the garment move and fold to react with the different shapes and movements of the body 2. test different materials, in particular fabrics 3. engineer a connection to close the garment that will control the contraction and expansion of the piece, or alternatively, investigate the possibility of a seamless connection Post-interim feedback: I have been advised that differential fold patterns that are developable, are quite difficult to design, so I am most likely leaving that idea for now. I am most interested in the kinetics of the garment, so that, alongside materiality is what I will be concentrating on for Part C.

CRITERIA DESIGN

B.7 learning objectives & outcomes

Studio AIR so far, and specifically Part B, has enhanced my abilities to interrogate a brief, in particular being able to be critical and analytical towards a brief that is quite broad and open-ended (Objective 1). The process of analysis and then iteration has progressed my ability to generate a variety of design possibilities for a given situation (Objective 2). My skills in digital media, and three-dimensional media have expanded immensely (Objective 3). I have had my first foray into digital fabrication and feel competent to use a range of digital programs that I couldn't before. My understanding of space, and 'air' becomes richer with every new skill or bite of knowledge I acquire in this course (Objective 4). The process of prototyping and building in the physical world is more familiar to me and a process I find satisfying (Objective 5). My ability to analyse more contemporary architectural designs increases with each precedent I study (Objective 6). I have developed a new language and way of thinking for myself through understanding data structures and the fundamentals of algorithmic programming (Objective 7). I feel confident to say I have developed a set of skills that have specific areas of application in computational design and look forward to taking them further (Objective 8).

CRITERIA DESIGN

B.8 appendix

ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

CRITERIA DESIGN

reference list 'CURVED FOLDING', (Eversmann Studio, 2011)<http://www.eversmann.fr/ CURVED-FOLDING/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 'In Silico Building', (In Silico Building, 2016) <https://insilicobuilding.wordpress.com/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 'Loop_3', (Co-de-It), <http://www.co-de-it.com/wordpress/loop_3.html/> [accessed 5 September 2016] 'Material Matters', (EPFL, 2012) <https://vimeo.com/49018447/> [accessed 5 September 2016] ‘MoMa Fabrications 1998, New York Installations’, <http://www.nadaaa. com/#/projects/fabrications/>, [accessed 5 September, 2016].

CONCEPTUALISATION

CONCEPTUALISATION 91

CONCEPTUALISATION