AIR ARCHITECTURE STUDIO
SEMEST ER 2 | 2017 H U Z A AY U B
TABLE OF CONTENTS 4-5 Introduction 6-9 Design Futuring 10-13 Design Computation 14-17 Composition/Generation 18 Conclusion 19 Learning Outcome 20 Algorithmic Sketches
Huza Ayub www.huzaifahayub.com I am Huza, short for Huzaifah, an architecture student from Singapore and currently enrolled in the University of Melbourne. Growing up in Singapore, I was exposed to numerous architectural marvels in the city-state. From old colonial buildings such as the Fullerton Hotel, designed by Major P.H. Keys in 1919, to the lavish and modern Marina Bay Sands, brainchild of internationally acclaimed architect Moshe Safdie. The beauty in which the two buildings, though designed generations apart, could coexist just streets apart with each of it’s own unique style of architecture made me stood up and took more interest in the art of architecture. Studying Landscape Architecture in Singapore, I am well versed in Sketch Up, Autocad and Photoshop. One of the key take away from my time as a Landscape Architect is the usage of landscaping to offset the carbon footprint of a building, which will in turn help to reduce the effects of global warming. Naturally, ecological and sustainablve design will play a crucial role in my journey as an architect. Even with all the technological advances, an architect’s quest of using creativity and imagination to design structures that will evoke a sense of belonging and vibrancy to an area, creating a place where dreams are born and realised, all while continuing to excite and inspire generations ahead, will never change. It is with these reasons, along with the unwavering desire to make the world a better place for anyone to live in, that makes it a dream for a creative and ambitious person like me to pursue further in life
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ABOUT ME
About Me
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CASCADE @ KALLANG
STUDIO EARTH: HERRING ISLAND
PAST WORKS
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Conceptualisation
FIG.1: BEE’AH HQ
A1: Design Futuring
DOME OVER MANHATTAN By Buckminster Fuller & Shoji Sadao Dome over Manhattan was Buckminster Fuller’s, together with Shoji Sadao, 1960s visionary proposal to cover Midtown Manhattan with a geodesic dome spanning 3km that will regulate the city’s ecosystems and reducing air pollution. Its benefits would have included reduced heating and cooling costs as buildings will no longer require individual heating and cooling system as the dome will instead regulate the temperatures. Unsurprisingly, it was easily dismissed as an absurd and radical idea at that point of time and was never built. However, Fuller did backed his proposal with plausible logics and statistics. For a start, he did a study on geodesic domes ad it was found that the bigger they are, the more economical and stronger they will be. Fuller also claimed that the cost of the dome will be eventually offset by the savings made from services no longer needed with a dome such as snow removal, which costs almost $90 million a year¹.
FIG.2: DOME OVER MANHATTAN
As radical as it seems back then, the proposal still sets a precedent till this day and is becoming more relevant due to the onslaught of global warming that we are facing. As written by Fry, we are now on the cusp of one of the most dramatic changes in our mode of earthly habitation and the problem can only be solved if they are confronted, not by chance but by design². Also, the proposal by Fuller is a clear demonstration of one out of the two tasks defined by Fry of Design Futuring, which is to redirect us towards a far more sustainable mode of planetary habitation. The dome was designed to do as such, providing us a more sustainable way to live and protect from the harms of global warming. Therefore, it will continue to set a precedent for design futuring, as architects continue to find a way to battle an ever changing environment. Maybe, the proposal should be relooked upon and be reconsidered to be built.
1. Lloyd Atler, “A look at Bucky Fuller’s dome over New York City” <https://www.treehugger.com/urban-design/look-bucky-fullersdome-over-new-york-city.html>[accessed 9 August 2017] 2. Tony Fry, Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg., 2008) p. 6 8
DESIGN FUTURING
FIG. 3: DOME OVER MANHATTAN
BEE’AH
HEADQUARTERS By Zaha Hadid Architects FIG.3 BEE’AH HQ
FIG.4 BEE’AH HQ
Unlike the previous project, the Bee’ah headquarters is currently being built but similar to the previous project, it is a fine example of sustainable planetary habitation in design futuring. After decades of reckless depletion of limited resources, it is about time for architects to begin taking into consideration the future of a design for every projects and how it can be sustainable. This can be done through careful considerations of the conception and the design influence on an environment through the use of materials, forms and functions. The Bee’ah Headquarters project managed to do just that. Situated in a desert context, the design was created in response to its natural environment as a series of intersecting dunes and orientated according to the region’s prevailing winds. The power required to run the building will be generated from converting municipal waste into energy and supplemented by large arrays of photovoltaic cells which are integrated into its landscaping. The façade is operable to allow for natural ventilation which will minimize the needs of artificial cooling. It is also made up of materials that reflects the sun’s ray which will help to further reduce energy consumption by mimicking the natural desert heat profile¹. Additionally, in conjunction with Buro Happold, material consumption for the building structure was minimized through architectural and structural integration. By using a standard orthogonal dimension, a significant portion of the building’s structure and skin are constructed from materials recovered from local construction and demolition waste streams. It is claimed that by using such active and passive approach, energy consumption will be reduced by 30%¹. Bee’ah also made the decision to use the building as a learning resource, which will help to provide others with an insight while spreading the message of design futuring.
1.Philip Stevens, “zaha hadid reveals bee’ah’s sharjah headquarters in the emirati desert” <https://www.designboom.com/architecture/zaha-hadidbeeah-headquarters-sharjah-uae-12-18-2014/>[accessed 9 August 2017]
FIG.5 BEE’AH HQ
DESIGN FUTURING
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A2: Design Computation FIG.6 ELYTRA PAVILION
RESEARCH PAVILION By ICD & ITKE Inspired by the anatomy of a sea urchin, researchers and students from the University of Stuttgart employed robots to mold and stitch pieces of laminated plywood together to form the pavilion. The pavilions are fabricated with the intention to showcase the potential of computational design, simulation and fabrication processes in Architecture. It was also an experimentation of a new fabricating technique developed after conducting a research with biologists on the fibrous connections found in a sea urchins. The patterns were then replicated by creating a custom software for a robot and a sewing machine which were used to join a series of wood panels together to create the pavilion. The robots were tasked with bending two sheets of custom laminated plywood together and the sewing machines were then used to lace them to prevent the woods from separating¹.
FIG.7 RESEARCH PAVILION
The whole design process for the pavilion, which explored the relationship between computer and architecture, defined a digital continuum from design to production and from form generation to fabrication design as written by the Oxmans². It is a good example of how computation is helping designers to create intricate structures and solving construction problems by creating an algorithm and a clear example of the biological influence that is contributing to the evolution of digital architecture in the second decade. With design computation, construction limitations are no longer relevant and fabrication processes will be greatly accelerated.
FIG.8 RESEARCH PAVILION
“The pavilion shows how the computational synthesis of biological principles and the complex reciprocities between material, form and robotic fabrication can lead to innovative timber construction methods,” said the team. 1. Jessica Mairs, “Robotically fabricated pavilion by University of Stuttgart students is based on sea-urchin shells” <https://www. dezeen.com/2016/05/05/robotically-fabricated-pavilion-university-ofstuttgart-students-plywood-icd-itke/>[accessed 9 August 2017] 2. Oxman, Rivka and Robert Oxman, Theories of the Digital in Architecture (London; New York: Routledge) p. 1 12
DESIGN COMPUTATION
FIG.2
FIG.9 RESEARCH PAVILION
ELYTRA FILAMENT
PAVILION By Achim Menges
Comprising of 40 unique hexagonal components, each robotically fabricated from transparent glass fiber and black carbon fiber is The Elytra Filament Pavilion designed by Architect Achim Menges and influenced by biomimicry in design. Constructed with the aid of digital computation, the hexagonal components are spun using a robotic arms and new canopy’s are being placed according to data collected by fiber optic sensors embedded in the glass fibers. This displays the deep integration of computational software in the fabrication of the composite materials. Such deep integrations are also allowing for robots to be programme to produce much larger spanning structures such as stadium roofs using the same fabrication methods and fibrous building materials, as claimed by the designer¹. This is an example of computer aiding designers to propose for standard solutions, fabricating the resulting structures and managing the buildings once built, a process known as communication which is the ability to share information between humans and computers, as written by Kalay².
FIG.10 ELYTRA PAVILION
By means of communication through computers, the design process has been open up for more people to be involved and leads to design democracy, the ability of anyone to practice as a designer though only at a superficial level³. As such, in order not to make designs trivialized, design computation has to be reined in and not be too commercialized.
FIG.11 ELYTRA PAVILION
“This is very much a showcase of how design and engineering come together,” “I think we’re experiencing another paradigm shift, a fourth industrial revolution.”
1. Jessica Mairs, “Robotically fabricated carbon-fibre pavilion opens at the V&A” <https://www.dezeen.com/2016/05/18/robotically-fabricated-carbonfibre-pavilion-opens-va-museum-london-university-of-stuttgart-achimmenges/?li_source=LI&li_medium=rhs_block_1>[accessed 9 August 2017] 2. Kalay, Yehuda E, Architecture’s New Media: Principles, Theories, and Methods of Computer-Aided Design (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press) p. 3
FIG.2
FIG.11 ELYTRA PAVILION
Tony Fry, Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg., 2008) p. 6 DESIGN COMPUTATION
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A3: Composition/Generation FIG.12 GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE
RESEARCH PAVILION By ICD & ITKE The structure of the pavilion is inspired by the morphological principles of arthropods’ exoskeletons and the whole project delves into the possible interrelation between biomimetic design strategies and robotic production¹. The exploration of biomimetic designs through the use of algorithmic aided design is a form of generative designing. The advances of generative design can be seen in the project where the integration of the form generating methods, computational simulations and robotic manufacturing allowed for the development of a high performance structure, creating new tectonic possibilities in architecture, something which will be barely possible if not for generative computational design. The process resulted in the pavilion only requiring a shell thickness of four millimeters of composite laminate while spanning eight meters¹. The ongoing research, in this and previous projects suggests a growing acceptance of computational design and it becoming a norm as part of architectural works. It will also help to create more innovative new materials in the future which will help to make structures more economical and efficient.
FIG.13 RESEARCH PAVILION
FIG.2
FIG.14 RESEARCH PAVILION
1. Emilie Chalcraft, “Research Pavilion by ICD and ITKE” <https://www.dezeen. com/2013/03/05/research-pavilion-by-icd-and-itke/>[accessed 10 August 2017]
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COMPOSITION/GENERATION
FIG.2 FIG.15 RESEARCH PAVILION
GUANGZHOU
OPERA HOUSE By Zaha Hadid Architects
FIG.16 GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE
FIG.17 GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE
Zaha Hadid’s Guanzhou Opera House is influenced by river valleys, engaging with the principles of erosion, geology and topography which resulted in the creation of dramatic lines and canyons to mimic the landscape analogy while defining the different spaces¹. The clever interplay of the different forms in the various spaces effectively combines generative design with compositional design. Custom molded glass fiber reinforced gypsum units, designed through computation are used for the interior of the auditorium to ensure the continuous flow of a single fluid and seamless design language while the different levels are zoned using traditional smooth transitions to continue with the landscape analogy¹. This project emphasized the importance and relevance of the usage of traditional compositional design to demarcate functional spaces and the limitations of generative design. As impressive as it may look, using generatively designed curvilinear geometries may not be the best way to define spaces in a building and as such traditional compositional design should never be totally abandon but the two should be used in tandem instead to create a functional and yet aesthetically pleasing building.
1. Rose Etheringtont, “Guangzhou Opera House by Zaha Hadid Architects” <https://www.dezeen.com/2011/02/25/guangzhou-operahouse-by-zaha-hadid-architects/>[accessed 10 August 2017] COMPOSITION/GENERATION
FIG.18 GUANGZHOU OPERA HOUSE
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A4: Conclusion With the ever growing significance technology is becoming in our daily life, architects should be taking advantage of the digital tools to produce and aid us in the development of new projects. Such tools are opening up new opportunities for architects and should be used as a means to improve our daily life instead of creating magnificent yet meaningless structures just to put our name on the world map. Such structures serves no main purpose other than to stroke ones ego and becoming a redundant tourist attractions.
However, as architects starts to lean towards computational digital designs, we should never forgo the basics of compositional design and instead should try to find a balance between the two. It has to be ensured that functionality is never sacrificed over form as the true purpose of a building is always to serve the community using it.
Design futuring will also play an important role as the world faces an environmental epidemic. As architects, we should always be mindful of the environment and are the key initiators to design a more sustainable habitat. With the aid of design computation, it s now easier than ever to create efficient and sustainable buildings. As such, architects should lead the way to designing for a more sustainable and better future for the generations ahead.
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CONCLUSION
A5: Learning Outcome Delving into the world of architectural computing has helped to make me stood up and realized the importance and relevance of computational design. It was previously unknown to me how relevant architectural computing has became and it has also open up a plethora of different possibilities and opportunities for designs that were previous deemed inconceivable. Design futuring and using generative design to formulate an economical structure of particular resonates most to me as I have always been an advocate of designing sustainably. It is a key area I will relook upon for my previous projects. In all, even with the advances of computation, an architects main job scope of designing a community and place people can call home will never diminished and should always be the main priority.
LEARNING OUTCOME
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ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES
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SKETCHES
CONCEPTUALISATION
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