ARCHITECTURE DESIGN STUDIO : AIR
JOURNAL Elsa Christian | 377955
CONTENT PART 1 | EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
CASE FOR INNOVATION: ARCHITECTURE AS A DISCOURSE 3 COMPUTATION IN ARCHITECTURE 11 PARAMETRIC DESIGN 17
RESEARCH PROJECT: DEVELOP 21 CASE STUDY 23
GROUP EOI: COMPILATION 27
PART 2 | PROJECT PROPOSAL
DESIGN CONCEPT 57 FORM FINDING 59 PATTERN FINDING 61 STRIATIONS 63 WATER FLOW DIAGRAM 63 CONSTRUCTION METHOD 64 FINAL DESIGN 65 DESIGN CONCERNS 69
PART 3 | LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOME
PERSONAL BACKGROUND & LEARNING OBJECTIVES 73 LEARNING PROGRESS 73 LEARNING OUTCOMES 74 FUTURE WORK 74
REFERENCES 75
PART 1
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
CASE FOR INNOVATION: Architecture as a Discourse 3
FROM THE READINGS Richard Williams, ‘Architecture and Visual Culture’, in Exploring Visual Culture : Definitions, Concepts, Contexts, ed. by Matthew Rampley (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2005), pp. 102 - 16. 2 interesting points about this reading: - architecture is a form of philosophy - architectural discourse can be engaged as visual culture The first point is an important one because it explains the existence of discourses in the world of architecture, as one’s perception will not be entirely the same to other’s. The second point is kind of intriguing for me, because I think that architecture is not always about visual or what can be seen. It is also about progress, meaning, emotion and many more. But, then again, I guess we can see this reading as a discourse as well.
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THE LEGO TOWERS
BJARKE INGELS GROUP (BIG)
This proposal presents a new approach of tower design. The idea behind this proposal was to offer a new way of living in the modern world. This proposal lacked of plan and mainly only explored the design area, which might be because it was their intention in creating an architectural discourse. The focus is in the design, how it will look like, what looks good. As Bjarke Ingels mentioned in his interview with Wired Magazine (2011), his works is based on playfulness, which is taken to a higher level where it is really being thought through. Playfulness does not mean that we are being careless in doing our design, but rather, it has taken design into a whole new level where it is not being tied to anything (e.g. precedents, style, order). It creates a new challenging discourse in architecture, which is interesting because the principle is that there is no principle, just a lot of hard work, experiments and playing around.
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“People always somehow misunderstand the light-heartedness of our discourse, the fact that we just play around.
If you want to break the mould, if you want to do something surprising or different, [you need to do] three times the work to make it convincing. If you just follow the standard, you don’t need to make it up because it’s already done. You have to take the playfulness really seriously to get it to work.”
- Bjarke Ingels
THE DOME HOUSE
MCBRIDE CHARLES RYAN
The dome house is one of many examples that try to embrace the environment and bring it as part of the building. It is interesting as how architectural designs nowadays are trying to “fix� the environment and to blend with it rather than to keep it in complete separation like how it used to be. Indoor and outdoor environments mixed together.
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WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL
It is one of the most famous deconstructive architectural designs that further express the discourse of architecture as ornamentation that can be achieved through playful ideas. The most striking feature of this building is its abstract shape. It can be said that it acts as an ornament for the whole city, and because of that, it catches many people’s attention. This building showcases the success of ornamentation as the main focus of a building. Started with only a messy sketch by Gehry, it further developed into physical models. And, as most of us have known, Gehry’s style is to do modifications here and there on his physical models according to his liking. The playfulness and thoroughness of his thinking about design really takes its triumph in this design and, again, proves and offers playfulness as the new way of thinking about architecture.
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FRANK GEHRY
CASE FOR INNOVATION: Computation in Architecture 11
FROM THE READINGS Yehuda E. Kalay, Architecture’s New Media : Principles, Theories, and Methods of Computer-Aided Design (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2004), pp. 5 - 25. “Design, accordingly, is a purposeful activity, aimed at achieving some well-defined goals.” This statement can be true on certain times. However, sometimes when we design, we don’t really have any goals. We experiment with the design in order to find the best solution we can get for a problem, and we don’t know what the best solution is until we find it.
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DIGITAL TEA HOUSE GSAPP
A simple interesting structure produced by computation in architecture. This project uses the same tool that we are using in this subject, which are Rhino and Grasshopper. This project also conveys that technonologies are not necessarily on different terms with culture. They can actually work side by side, and it has been proven through this project where the technolgy is used to compliment the (japanese) culture (designboom, retrieved 29th April 2012). The Digital Tea House sets a vision for the Gateway project that it is possible to use modern technologies to convey their cultural nature.
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BRITISH MUSEUM FOSTER AND PARTNERS
The design uses the most commonly applied form of triangulation on the planar tesselation roofing structure (Branko 2003). In this design, it shows how computational program can be used to make things easier for architecture. Imagine doing all of this without any help from computer program, it is definitely going to take much more time as each piece is different form another. This example further express the profits of using computation in architecture. It can save time and help in manufacturing materialls needed to build the design.
CASE FOR INNOVATION: Parametric Design 17
FROM THE READINGS Burry, Mark (2011). Scripting Cultures: Architectural Design and Programming (Chichester: Wiley), pp. 8 - 71. The readings mentioned about how Parametricism is the first real style after the Modern Movement. It is not necessarily true, because I think Parametricism is still on the stage of experimentations and, therefore, it has not become a style yet; which is a good thing for the Gateway project, as if it is already a style, that means it is not as new and as exciting as before when people are still competing to find the best solution of it. It also means that Parametricism is still in high demand because not many are using it yet and we can become one of the pioneers in Parametricism.
IMMURING
DAVIDCLOVERS
This design explores the possibilities of wall cladding for Lunar House in Houston, Texas. It shows that architecture is slowly moving away from the Modern Movement; of which it was all about form follows function, simplicity, stripped down faรงade, etc. Here, architecture is used to explore murals, carvings, which in some ways kind of moving back to the classical era where architecture used to be full of ornamentation. Using Parametricism, it enables architects to not only further explore architectural ornaments, patterns, but also in other configurations of architectural detailing (e.g. tectonic, interior, structural) and it becomes the new style of architecture (Burry 2011). It is important as it shows the progression of architecture nowadays- where it is leading.
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RESEARCH PROJECT: CUT Develop 21
RESEARCH PROJECT: CUT Case Study 23
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GROUP EOI: Compilation
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EXPRESSION expression of interest of INTEREST// Gateway to Wyndham
byElsa Marcella Christian | 377955 Nadira Jeannot | 376188 Jinn Jyh Leow | 376016 Mohamad Izzat Mohamad Nazri | 376055
Tutors Chris Loren Adams Lecturer Stanislav Roudavski
architecture design studio 3 : AIR | semester 1, 2012
“We all come from the school of something� Burry 2011
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Introduction
Throughout history, art has been interpreted through various schools of thought– there was classicism, modernism, and post-modernism (to name a few). What’s timeless here is that architecture never fails to reinvent itself, and every age has a new idea of what beauty is, what it represents, and what it should be. Our current society hitherto is one which celebrates individuality – and art must follow suit. Mass production is no longer desirable. Something unique, fresh and new to signal our development is required. Parametricism is the answer to this – a revolutionary, progressive new style, seen as the first real movement since the advent of Post-modernism (Burry 2011, p. 18). We believe that through parametric design, we will bring Wyndham to a new level of sophistication and have it recognised as a forward-looking city with much to offer and be proud of.
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The Future of
WYNDHAM -to become a cultural city enriched by art -break away from the ‘stagnant past’ of its history. -the Arts Hub of Victoria -a progressive arts community. -Gateway Project -Parametrically designed -a catalyst -pull the city forward by creating an identity as well as a sense of space. -The progression of Wyndham will take the form of parametric design, and that is how we would design the Gateway project. The city of Wyndham aspires to break away from its stagnant past. It wants to be the Arts Hub of Victoria harbouring a progressive arts community. We will achieve this via parametric design, with the Gateway project as the starting point of that future we envision. The following precedents further emphasize the advantages and promises of parametric design.
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YEOSU PAVILLION
http://www.kokkugia.com/
by KOKKUGIA
-merges theme of ocean and architecture into a fine conglomeration of colour and form. -a symbol (Williams 2005) of progression; our aim with the design–not only be the welcome sign, but also an icon of progression and of growth of Wyndham. -colour as a primary player in expressing design intent and providing experiential qualities. -large amount of freedom associated with parametric design – open ended and flexible This pavilion will be the centerpiece of the Yeosu Expo 2012, and this shows how parametric design can create an iconic piece of architecture. It also demonstrates that parametric design has gained much respect from the architectural realm, so much so that it is being highlighted as the centerpiece of the Yeosu Expo 2012. This directly relates to the brief’s call for an iconic sculpture.
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Iconic
Beijing Olympic Stadium by Herzog & De Meuron
-An icon that expresses progression and modernity through parametric design, but still rich in traditional influence. (with the bird’s nest form) -Designing parametrically does not mean that local culture would be forgone -The Gateway project design should ultimately be a community art project that represents the people and the city, rather than a standalone structure. We hope that this will foster community pride as the brief calls for.
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Modern + Traditional
The Lego Towers by BIG Architects
“People always somehow misunderstand the light-heartedness of our discourse, the fact that we just play around. If you want to break the mould, if you want to do something surprising or different, [you need to do] three times the work to make it convincing. If you just follow the standard, you don’t need to make it up because it’s already done. You have to take the playfulness really seriously to get it to work.” (Bjarke Ingels in Wired Magazine 2011) -parametric architecture in playful exploration and expression -emphasises on the exploration of the form -light-hearted design needs to be thought through and it is perfectly capable to produce something mindblowing and strong to influence others. The Lego Towers shows how parametric design can be playful and whimsical, but still meets its basic functional requirement. We want to be playful in our design as well so as to create an “original and engaging” form as aspired by Wyndham.
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Playful
The Lunar House by David Clover
-ornamentation is different from decoration, where ornamentation is something carved out of a surface and decoration is something put on to a surface (moussavi 2006) -parametrically generated ornamentation is the key point of this building. -careful assemblies and choices of materials results in ornaments (Moussavi 2011), a building cannot be separated from ornamentation as ornamentation essentially makes up the whole idea of architecture. In other words, it can be said that the buildings themselves are ornaments that composed a city. It can be observed that ornamentation is the path where architecture has been walking for the last few years and this is how we conceive the Gateway project: an ornament that represents Wyndham Parametricism enables architects to further explore architectural ornaments, especially in making its details. We see the Gateway project as an ornament which marks the city. Immuring shows the successful use of parametrically generated ornaments that works in both daylight and at night. Since the Gateway project requires us to consider the day/night views, this is a good precedent for us.
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Ornamentation
GASP!
by Room 11 -multi-faceted -colour as the artistic solution -Strong contrast with the surrounding context creates a strong “sense of presence�. -enhance the experience of the drivers -Becomes the focal point of the Gateway. -Parametric design could bring this colur change effect to a whole new level. -Integrating parametrically designed forms with colour to produce a state of the art sculpture for Wyndham. -The Gateway project is a way of representing art and also an invitation for people to drive through the Gateway in order to experience the effect the sculpture would
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Colour+Motion
Chromatex by Softlab -highlights colour as the focal point of the installation -colour as something playful and to be celebrated -adding visual enhancement and emphasizing parametric forms. -systematic and easy fabrication of a complex sculpture that is economically viable -the gateway is to be something that Wyndham residents can relate to, a sculpture they will be proud of and which represents them in a proper way. The essence of Wyndham is important to be incorporated into the project. The colour of this sculpture is manipulated through Grasshopper scripting and is produced economically and quickly - it saves time and cost. Likewise, we would like to use colours to emphasize the parametric forms in our design to enhance the experience of the drivers.
FORM COLOURS PATTERNS MATERIALITY
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Colour
http://figure-ground. com/de_ young/0018/
Blur Building by Diller Scofidio + Renfro -architecture as a special effects machine (Diller 2008) -capture attention, and the uniqueness of the building makes it memorable -key: to be memorable via the special effects -permanence of structure is secondary -low definition (no details) -By applying this principle to the project, the form precedes the details – a suitable form to highlight the motion is more important than intricate details.
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Impermanence
of
De Young Museum by Herzog & De Meuron -Weather adds another layer to the depth of parametric designs -two very different looks in dry and wet weather, changes with the season (encourages multiple views) -important choice of material -material deterioration as part of the design -Weathering stretches the time scale -Minimised maintenance -“Stains on the building are evidence of its capacity for resistance.�
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Time
MATRICES of COMBINATIONS/
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Pattern Colour Form Weathering
We started by exploring the moirÊ patterns but it was too shallow and we wanted something deeper with more substance behind the rationale. Hence, we decided to use the image sampler on patterns in nature, inspired by the Victoria State Rose Garden in Wyndham. The Rose Garden is the pride of the city as it won the International Garden of Excellence by the World Federation of Rose Societies in 2003 with the care of only volunteers. Then, we went on to explore patterns in nature – zebra, cheetah and fish scales. However, we still feel that those inspired by the Rose Garden are the best ones as it has a strong link back to the city and may make the citizens feel more attached to the sculpture. The idea of progression was also considered and explored through more abstract patterns by the means of dynamic attractor curves. 41
Patterns
Colour
As we see the gateway project as an ornament, we decided to explore the Voronoi pattern, inspired by the skin of Airspace Tokyo in our reverse engineering case study. They could be easily generated with many variations. Voronoi patterns were laser cut on polypropylene sheets and then wrapped and stacked into a tower form to see how the webs interact in complex manners. The layering added complexity to the patterns, and the translucence of the polypropylene sheets created interesting light effects, which might be useful in night conditions. As most people focuses on the web of the Voronoi, we are interested in the negative spaces of the voronoi too. With the leftover cutouts, we recreated the Voronoi pattern. Since colour will play an important role in our design, we experimented with different colours on the leftover cutouts to make it more interesting. To be more playful, we hung the cutouts and observed the motion and colour changes created by the wind. Together with a reflective voronoi, the effects of the colours are quite astonishing. Vibrant colours were chosen because, again, they are inspired by the vibrant colours of the roses in the Rose Garden.
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Form
The form that we found through Grasshopper is the one that is the most dynamic and best highlights the motion of the highway. The dynamism of the form also highlights the theme of progression – the aspiration of Wyndham as called for in the brief foe the Gateway Project. In order to put motion and colour together, we have explored another two forms that has multiple view points, in which the colour changes as one moves along. The first design uses the angles the small panels sit to show the colour of the underside from behind and the colour of the top side from the front. With only two views, we feel that we need more viewpoints as the GASP! Project managed to produce multiple viewpoints without the help of digital tools. Hence, the second form is very angular with multiple surfaces created by breaking a large surface into smaller surfaces. Different colour could be applied to each surface and each side so that the sculpture changes more as one moves along the highway.
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Weathering Patterns
Here, we explored two different ways to use weathering to create interest: weathering to show patterns and weathering of colour. Pattern weathering combines the previous exploration of patterns with time. The patterns are generated parametrically and the panel will be allowed to weather. In the stop-motion video, we can see that the pattern only reveals itself through time as the weak spots are weathered away. The colour weathering examples below are inspired by the changing colour of de Young Museum.
Weathering
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Experiment 1 The first colour weathering example draws its colour (red and blue) from the logo of Wyndham City Council. As one of the quotes states that stains on a building show its capacity for resistance, we decided to stain a bottom sculpture with the “weathered� colours from the first. The staining did not work out as well, probably because we did not wait for the paint to dry before adding more water. However, the mix of reds and blues on the base created a very interesting pool/river of colour, something we will explore further with the site contours.
Experiment 2 The second colour weathering example explores the effects of double-layered colours. As the purple washes away, the yellow beneath reveals itself, and finally the translucent polypropylene sheets. In the process, the colour themselves created interesting patterns on the parametrically designed form.
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PART 2
PROJECT PROPOSAL
DESIGN CONCEPT PROGRESSION AND WEATHERING BY NATURE Can be achieved by: - choice of materials -> use materials that can change colour when weathered, e.g. iron, zinc, etc - apply wathering layers on top of the main structure -> can be paint, moss, seeds (to be eaten by birds), chipping materials, etc Control the movement of the weathering: - carved out a shallow pathway for, e.g., water to flow - rearrange the topographical landscape to and use the gravity to control the movement ROLE OF PARAMETRICISM - use to make a form that represents Wyndham, e.g. what they want to achive, which is to move away from their stagnant past -> parametricism is still relatively new and, thus, by using parametricism people can see the modernism in Wyndham ABOUT WYNDHAM - is an arts and craft community - famous for its agricultural area and Rose Garden - therefore, closely related to nature and aesthetic. AIM - to use parametricism to represent the culture of Wyndham and to show the progression of Wyndam moving away from their stagnant past.
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FORM FINDING
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two directions from Geelong and Melbourne
moving toward the middle point of site A
collision in the middle, forming a tower structure
THE TWIST
The structure is twisted according to the average wind path so that the surface will get the most of wind-blows and get most ot the effect on weathering process. intertwine the two direction into one
another two direction towards the structure is added to strengthen the gateway, directing the eyes onto the structure
covering part of the structure (tower)
the tower is twisted to give more dimension and view angle for the viewers
PATTERN FINDING Earlier patterns
Developing patterns
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1
2
3
4
The pattern on the tower is the most important part in our design because we need to find what kind of pattern that will show the most of the weathering process of the tower, as well as maintaining the identity of Wyndham. The final pattern that we have showcases the uniqueness in our design, where we try to control the flow of the weathered materials by making striations for the rusts to follow, but on the same time, the may or may not follow these striations and stain the wall instead, flowing naturally. This provides an interesting outcome as we cannot fully foreseen what it may become in the upcoming years. One thing we know for sure is that in time the tower will reveal the main structure as all the layers on top of it will decay, leaving the true structure stand tall.
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STRIATIONS +
- - -
The first striation shown by the thicker line is coater with steel over copper plates The second striation grid consist of hollow striation on the surface of the cnc milled concrete panel By combining both grids, we got our striation pattern.
WATER FLOW DIAGRAM
2012
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2020
2028
2036
CONSTRUCTION METHOD
VEIL CONSTRUCTION
2mm thick iron sheet (exposed)
iron sheet ancors coated with corrosion resistant barrier burried underground 0mm 100 200 300 400 500
TOWER CONSTRUCTION steel bolts
steel cover
steel cover copper underlay
copper underlay
brass nails
precast concrete panel (cnc milled formwork)
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precast concrete panel (cnc milled formwork)
- Incorporation between simple form and weathering materials, which are steel and copper. - The name ‘Reveal’ works in two different timescape: short and long term - Short term implies to the short time when the drivers passing through the structure, as they move closer, the structure starts to open up and reveal the main tower - Long term implies to the time the layering materials disintegrate and reveal the entire tower. - Colours will gradually change as the materials start to rust - Uncertainty and impredictability on the outcome of the tower become the key point of interest of this design
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PATINA COLOUR CHARTS
FINAL DESIGN
DESIGN CONCERNS PROBLEMS: - The use of reactive metals that produce rust - No design action has been taken regarding the rust collected at the bottom of the tower IMPACT: - Rust will have direct contact with the land and might cause harm to it - Pollution of the environment (land, vegetation, air, water) will most likely happen Further design decision has to be made regarding the bad impact to the environment. Things like how the rust water will be channelled to be recycled need to be thought through to reduce the harm cause onto the environments.
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PART 3
LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOME
PERSONAL BACKGROUND & LEARNING OBJECTIVES It was kind of overwhelming and scary when I first found out that this subject is going to have so much computational design. I have always been in a bad relationship with computer programs and this is not my strongest point in making a design, as I love to sketch my design. Of cource in sketches I cannot get every exact detail of my design fully covered as easy as when I use a designing program, and it has been such a disadvantage for me. Knowing that this subject is going to be about computational design, I was aiming to at least be able to do the basics by the end of the semester. It is not that I do not want to learn the sophisticated computational design, but it has always been hard for me to work with computer programs. Therefore, my first objective is to learn and understand the basic stuff of it (Rhino and Grasshopper).
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LEARNING PROGRESS FULL OF STRUGGLE As I thought, it was really hard. It was fine when I followed the instruction from the EXLAB tutorials, but when I tried to make something my own, I always stuck and the components just could not connect to one another. It is sometimes frustrating that I know what kind of design I want to produce but I do not know how to make it in Grasshopper. What makes it even harder that there is another subject this semester that requires me to produce drawings with another program, which makes me have to learn three different programs at the same time.
LEARNING OUTCOMES In terms of computational design with Grasshopper, to be honest, I did not learn that much. However, I did pick up bits of this and that from this subject, such as: - organising layout - setting up photography stage (lighting potistion, angle of photo, etc) - more experimental design (especially with the colour and weathering) - getting more knowledge about different materials (especially metals)
FUTURE WORK The introduction to parametric design throughout the semester provides me with another kind of designing method, which has a considerably great influence in the future of design and architecture. It might be possible that I will develop more interest in parametric design and work with it in the future, or I might just forget about it and go back to the more traditional way of designing. Either way, I am greatful to be able to know and learn about parametric design and it will surely be a good lesson for me in the future work in architecture.
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References
ARUP (2011). Beijing National Stadium (Bird’s Nest), <http://www.arup.com/Projects/Chinese_National_Stadium. aspx> [accessed 3 April 2012] Burry, Mark (2011). Scripting Cultures: Architectural Design and Programming (Chichester: Wiley). Diller, L (2008). Liz Diller plays with architecture [video recording] < http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/liz_diller_ plays_with_architecture.html> [viewed 19 April 2012] Designboom (2010). Digital Teahouse Workshop < http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/8/view/13531/digitalteahouse-workshop.html> [accessed 29 April 2012] Kolarevic, B (2003). Architecture in the Digital Age: Design and Manufacturing (New York: Spon Press), pp. 3 – 62 Kolarevic, B and Malkawi, A (2005). Performative Architecture: Beyond Instrumentality (New York: Spon Press) Menges, A (2006). ‘Instrumental Geometry’, in Architectural Design, vol. 76 (2), pp. 42 – 53 Moussavi, F (2011). Form and Ornament [video recording] < http://www.iaac.net/lectures/farshid-moussavi-155> [viewed 12 April 2012] Richard Williams, ‘Architecture and Visual Culture’, in Exploring Visual Culture : Definitions, Concepts, Contexts, ed. by Matthew Rampley (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2005), pp. 102 - 16. Room 11, 2012, GASP, viewed on 22 April 2012, <http://room11.com.au/project/gasp> Williams, Richard (2005) Architecture and Visual Culture Wired Magazine (2011). Open Source Architect: Meet the maestro of ‘hedonistic sustainability’ <http://www.wired. co.uk/magazine/archive/2011/07/features/open-source-architect?page=1> [accessed 15 April 2012] Wyndham City Council (2012). Make Your Mark on Wyndham’s Art <http://www.wyndham.vic.gov.au/aboutwyndham/ pubmedia/media/2012mediareleases/april_2012/indooroutdoor> [accessed 19 April 2012] Zaera-Polo, A (2009). ‘Patterns, Fabrics, Prototypes, Tessellations’, in Architectural Design, vol. 76 (6), pp. 18 – 27
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