Design Journal
STUDIO AIR
DESIGN JOURNAL
PART A.
CONCEPTUALISATION
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CONCEPT ULISATION
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CONCEPTUALISATION
A.1 DESIGN FUTURING CONCEPTUALISATION
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CORNWALL GARDEN
- Case Study one
Chang Architects // 2014 // Singapore
As Tony Fry mentioned in his book, one of the tasks that ‘design futuring’ has to confront against current environmental backdrop is ‘redirecting towards far more sustainable modes of planetary habitation’1. Conventionally, residential project is using solid wall structure to enclose the private area as well as defining its interior and exterior spaces. Differently, this precedent of residential landed house suggested another innovative definition of good class living in tropics, in the physical and spiritual sense – by living with and constantly in touch with nature. Not only taking into consideration of local climate and site resources, this project succeeded in response to the broader context of gathering plants and water bodies as part of the overall planning for the purposes of passive cooling as well as general wellness of the environment.
To residents, this project relooks at ways of enhancing the joy of tropical living, of enlivening communal living in a contemporary, tropical setting, where family members reside in a home of interconnected social spaces. To environment, the architecture demonstrates great cooperation between nature and manmade in terms of material used. Salvaged materials and objects from the old house form part of the new house’s schedule of finishes, and recycled wood were used for floorings and cabinetries. In person, I will rate the project as ‘a tropical paradise’ which demonstrates the future possibilities of designing a residential habitation with sustainable approaches, also serving differing needs and aspirations in a contemporary urban setting.
image source: http://www.archello.com/en/project/cornwall-gardens
1. Tony Fry, Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg, 2008), p. 1-16.
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CONCEPTUALISATION
‘ECODUCT’ tHE BORKELD - Case Study Two Zwarts & Jansma Architects // 2005 // Netherland
As we know, wildlife animals take an important role as part of the ecosystem, but they are the one suffered the hugest impact from the aggressive and insatiable human activities as well. Aiming to help balancing and restoring out ecosystem, keep protecting the stable growth of nature life and minimizing the deconstruction of our mother nature are essential in current stage. Considering confronting our nemesis of ‘defuturing condition of unsustainability’, the bridge known as ’Ecoduct’ could be the response in the way of architecture1. The Borkeld is functioned as a wildlife overpass which designed for wildlife animals to get across highway A1 in the National Park called ‘Veluwe’. image source: http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread. php?t=1468140&page=52 https://au.pinterest.com/pin/378443174914082641/
Through the project, the architect made their effort to help animals regain their natural habitat which irrupted by human being, and also intended to make the intervention for human to be as discreet as possible where the span of bridge was designed without a central pillar to create a calm image for drivers on the highway. Gradually, the idea of building such ecoduct bridge spreads around the country of Netherland. Such a precedent provides insight to how architecture can instigate change of the world and remind people to consider more of the lives surrounded. In addition, the design strategy of composing natural ecology into man-made ecology paves the way of rescuing current distressing situation and should be highly encouraged for further dissemination.
1. Tony Fry, ‘Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice’ (Oxford: Berg, 2008), p. 1-16.
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CONCEPTUALISATION
A.2 DESIGN COMPUTATION CONCEPTUALISATION 17
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CONCEPTUALISATION
Research Pavilion- Case 2013-14 Study one ICD-ITKE University of Stuttgart // 2014 // Germany As through the contemporary computational design strategy and technology, the project ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2013-14 has been created and demonstrated the architectural potential of novel design, simulation and fabrication processes. According to Rivka Oxman and Robert Oxman, the development of digital architectural design should be accommodated by “emerge in the intersection between science, technology, design and architectural culture”1. As the project showing here, the project was planned and constructed within a multi-disciplinary team of biologist, palaeontologists, architects and engineers. image source: http://www.archdaily.com/522408/icd-itke-researchpavilion-2015-icd-itke-university-of-stuttgart
The project is focused on a parallel bottom-up design strategy with the help of novel robotic fabrication method to form the fibre reinforced polymer structures. In total 36 individual elements were fabricated, whose geometries are based on structural principles abstracted from the beetle elytra. Each of them has an individual fiber layout which results in a material efficient load-bearing system. Through the development of computational design and simulation tools, both the robotic fabrication characteristics and the abstracted biomimetic principles could be simultaneously integrated in the design process. Nowadays, without the help of various computational design strategies, such complex geometries are impossible to be conceivable and achievable. In conclusion, the pavilion precedent demonstrated the possibility of synthesis between material, form and robotic fabrication through computational strategies which can lead to the innovative generation of architectural design. Simultaneously, the tectonic feasibilities of architecture are also widened with the assistance of multidisciplinary research approach.
1. Rivka and Robert Oxman, ‘Theories of the Digital in Architecture’ (London; New York: Routledge, 2014), pp.1–10.
CONCEPTUALISATION
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BEIJING NATIONAL STADIUM - Case Study Two Herzog & de Meuron, ArupSport // 2007 // China
The stunning landmark building of Beijing National Stadium located at the south of the centrepiece Olympic Green and staged the 2008 Olympic Games with a gross volume of three million cubic metres which was considered to be the world’s largest enclosed space and steel structure. Better known as the Bird’s Nest, the most impressive part of the project must be the unwrapped steel frame which functioned for aesthetic purpose but also the entirely structure. If just simply using traditional methods through countless calculations and drafting on the paper, this kind of feasible structure would neither be designed nor built, hence the computational design strategies took a very important place at this stage. image source: http://www.designbuild-network.com/projects/national_ stadium/ http://w w w.detail - online.com/inspiration/national stadium-in-beijing-103349.html
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CONCEPTUALISATION
Besides, the engineering and construction of building are also heavily depended on computational design or parametric design. As an Olympic venue, there were many standards and requirements laid down which asked high level computational techniques and simulation tools to work out. For example, Computational fluid dynamics (CDF) simulation based on the Games-time situation has been used to calculate the temperature and airflow speed at each angle of the structure and optimise all ventilation facilities accordingly. As the era of rapid development of computational architecture, people are always trying to utilize various types of tools to examine more possibility while conceiving projects. On the other hand, it also gives impetus to people design better and more potent tools to take advantage in projects. Nowadays, the generative, computational design movement becomes an essential part in architectural design, as well as enhancing our ability to evolve the built environment.
CONCEPTUALISATION
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A.3
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CONCEPTUALISATION
3 COMPOSITION /GENERATION CONCEPTUALISATION 23
THE ESPLANADE - THEATRE ON THE BAY - Case Study One DP Architects, Russell Johnson // 2002 // Singapore
The eye-catching building in Singapore is a world-class performing arts centre made up of two rounded frames fitted with over 7,000 triangle glass sunshades. Locals have dubbed them “the Durian”, as the twin structures resemble the spiky tropical fruit that is unique to this part of the world. As Peters said in the ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, ‘the development of computational simulation tools can create more responsive designs, allowing architects to explore new design options and to analyse architectural decisions during the design process’1.
image source: https://w w w.esplanade.com/about-us/architectureand-building-design
This is a project occurred quite early in the modernist period which showing how the revolution in computational programs and the advancement in design from computerisation to computation. Such computer aided tool gave architects and engineers the ability to model buildings with simulating different solution to determine the best performance based on the analysis. However, to regulate and experiment various parameters to generate solutions, architect acquire adequate experience and knowledge of mastering the algorithmic design. A specific parameter example in this case is the adjustment of sun exposure level made to the shading system which the angles of ‘spikes’ should be defined accurately to made the building envelope efficient enough as well as ensuring the interior comfort level, what is all credited to the use of such computation generative approach during design process.
1. Brady Peters, ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, (Architectural Design, 83, 2, 2013) pp. 08-15.
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SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION - Case Study Two Foster & Partners, Brady Peters // 2007 // Washington DC
With the continuous development of computational design technologies and tools, the algorithmic thinking paves the way for architects to explore various design possibilities in different parts of the architecture such as the case showing in terms of roof construction. The structure consists of large span grid with varying nodes of height, which produced construction issues to the design team. Hence, a single computer program was written by one of the architect in the design team to generate the geometry of the roof. The computer code was used to explore design options and was constantly modified throughout the design process. It was also used to generate the final geometry and additional information needed to analyse structural and acoustic performance, to visualise the space, and to create fabrication data for physical models.
In this instant, computational design tool allows the architect to experiment different fabricated solutions on the digital model through modulating algorithmic script to ensure the accuracy during the design process. Considering the generative design critically, I start to wonder whether is the computational tool might make the architect or the design team over rely on them hence causing inconceivable design through process. Thus the architectural shift from composition to generation must be intertwined progressively as a steady evolution.
image source: h t t p : // w w w. f o s t e r a n d p a r t n e r s . c o m / p r o j e c t s / smithsonian-institution/
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The first part of studio air is about the idea of conceptualization which aimed to lay the foundation stone for the following parametric design processes. In the Design Futuring (a1) session, the topic is trying to point out our direction as an architectural designer, taking the consideration of building up our future design through sustainable approaches. In order to make my argument more convincing and comprehensive, I usually selected to analyse two precedent projects either form sharp contrast between or existing in different situations. As the cases I have selected in a1, the Cornwall Garden is to be a sustainable residential habitation while the Ecoduct is more focusing on the protection and restoration of ecosystem. Secondly, the Computational Design (a2) introduces the process of the computational evolution, as well as how it engaging into the design process. To discuss the benefits of the involvement of computational strategies, the case of ICD-ITKE Research Pavilion is talking about the exploration of materiality and robotic fabrication through computation, whereas the Beijing National Stadium utilized the computational technology in the structure and analytical calculation aspects.
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CONCEPTUALISATION
Get into the last chapter of Part A: Composition & Generation (a3), I started off looking into how architecture makes response to the shift from composition to generative design. There are various aspects that the generative design could be involved in such as the building performance of the Esplanade, and the structure construction analysis of the Smithsonian Institution.
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A.4 CONCLUSION
CONCEPTUALISATION
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I learned a lot of new knowledge in these 3 weeks. Grasshopper gives me a new way to think and design. It is a new design language which can help me build a totally different design system in my brain. I can only design some simple structure or something that I can imagine and I have ability to make a model before I learn Grasshopper. Now, I can do much more complex and special works. After I finish the readings and case study, I realized digital design will be the tendency of future designing. It is easy to combine with other technology. For example, the combination of digital design and 3D printing will improve the efficiency dramatically. I will try to explore more different ways to design architecture works with grasshopper in the future.
A.
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CONCEPTUALISATION
.5 LEARNING OUTCOMES CONCEPTUALISATION 31
A.6 A 32
CONCEPTUALISATION
Appendix Algorithmic Sketches CONCEPTUALISATION 33
WEEK 1 TASK: OcTree
WEEK 2 TASK: Contour Curves