Architecture Portfolio 2019 by Jaume Mercader

BIO Jaume Mercader I'm a young architect from Barcelona, currently based in Denmark. I’m interested in computation and digital fabrication methods, and I’m currently enrolled in CITA’s Master Degree at the Royal Academy in Copenhagen. During my education and my professional career in Barcelona, I developed skills in structure design and construction. My main work experience comes from these two fields. As I’m now learning computation and research methods for architectural design, my goal is to engage with practices that pioneer computationally-led design towards a new construction paradigm, in which the role of architects will adress issues such as material sustainability, carbon footprint and more. 2

INDEX 2019 2018

Second Semester ............................................................. 4 First Semester ................................................................ 14 Workshops ...................................................................... 24

2016-18 2016

Sagrada FamĂlia .............................................................. 32 ASCEM Pavilion .............................................................. 36

2016 2016

Bachelor Thesis .............................................................. 38 Almeda ............................................................................. 48 Contact Info ..................................................................... 54

MATERIAL SIMULATION I dedicated this semester to study the complexities related to designing with curved folding. By producing curved creases, a foldable, sheet material can gain rigidity and deploy in space. After manually experimenting with this technique, I set to develop an algorithmic process that allows a designer to accurately predict the folded geometry of a starting pattern, and compared this algorithm with existing tools such as origami software and KingKong plugins by RoboFold. The project was then moved into further speculation in an exercise regarding a contest design, in which an optimized curved folding pattern would cast a controlled shadow texture on a patio, considering a concrete sunlight setting. This project is still being developed. 5

4. 8

PAPER SAMPLES

COMPUTER SIMULATION

SUNLIGHT HOUR ANALYSIS

TEXTILE ARCHITECTURE The first semester at CITA was organized around workshop projects. In groups of 6, we were introduced to textile architecture and several investigation subjects, such as membrane structures, cnc-based knitting, kinetic structures... The collection displayed here contains, thus, not only my work, but the outcome of this team effort.

WORKSHOP 1: INHABITATED MEMBRANES Elastic membrane, GFSR rods, string, zip ties

MATERIAL DESIGN knitting machine

GENERATIVE DESIGNED PATTERNS 1D / 2D CELLULAR AUTOMATA

These patterns enable the designer to assign a certain parameter to a knit. We experimented with different loop sizes, materials... in order to gain control of the performance of our material. Certain yarns with different stiffnesses bind together to deform the plane of the knit, enabling us to speculate with certain approaches to shading performance and color.

PATTERN EXPLORATIONS

LASER-CUT PUNCHED CARD

CITA WORKSHOPS Here are displayed various works developed during CITAStudioâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s secondary workshops. Some of them are also group projects.

Design Led Coding: Python based modelling

Robotic Fabrication and Assembly 26

In the span of 1 week, we designed, fabricated and assembled a simple system with cnc and robotic means. This workshop introduced us to robotic technology and provided us with tools to integrate robots in our design workflow. We were trained both in UR collaborative robots as well as in ABB industrial robots. 27

Clay 3D Printing 28

Glass printing 30

This project was dedicated to bio-materials. Adding glass powder to a flour-based material, we pushed the limits of the additive manufacturing process in order to get the optimal material mix, geometric constraint and firing process.

SAGRADA FAMĂ?LIA I worked in the Sagrada FamĂlia Construction team for two years. My mission was to provide the building teams with 3D project data, as well as auxiliary elements and theodolite layouts. I took oportunity of this chance and improved the existing workflow with a novel parametric design approach. It speeded up the CAD/CAM chores, eased design and production of special formworks and structure elements and increased the precision with wich these elements were designed and later fabricated in the workshop.

PAVILION

This is my project for the ASCEM Pavilion in Construmat, the biggest construction fair in spain. ASCEM is a Spanish guild of metal structure builders, and the competition brief requested the pavilion to be built in steel, and to be cheap, easy to transport and assemble. I designed a tensegrity hyperboloid. The module of the radial structure consists of a long steel rod and two tensors, linking the rod to the adjacent modules. A scaffolding staircase would allow visitors to climb up and gain views to the whole fair. 36

Gràfica i panells informatius

Passera panoràmica a= 20,46m2

Hexagonal 2matrix a=54m

Membrana exterior

Octogonal matrix 2

Escala de cargol

a=68m

Puntals escala

Estructura tensegrity

Dodecagonal2 matrix a=88m

Superfície útil a= 31,48m2

Tarima de fusta 30 cm

Hexadecagonal2 matrix a=113m

Re-colonitzar Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Thesis

As a subject for my Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Thesis, I came back to my hometown, and proposed a plan for the refurbishment of a village near the river. I centered my plan not on the layout of the streets, but on the relationship between the new housing and the existing community. I carefully planned multiple housing types, allowing a varied population to add to the town and enrich its daily life. To supplement this expansion, new commodities to the town would be proposed, along with a revamp of the riverside, turning it into a promenade and link with nearby towns.

I . THE NEEDS

I. THE PLACE

I I. THE IDEA

The field

the garden

the square

skin

transit

privacy

Posicionament de biga de fonamentació Compact Habit

Col·locació dels mòduls biga. 06

Execució de la fonamentació in-situ. Anivellament de la cara superior ±5mm

Col·locació del primer nivell sobre la fonamentació. 04 S’uneixen mecànicament els mòduls contigus

Execució primer nivell de pilars 03

05 Posicionament de les creus premuntades

Posicionament de biga de fonamentació Compact Habit

Execució de la fonamentació in-situ. Anivellament de la cara superior ±5mm

ALMEDA The project in Almeda (near Barcelona) was developed in the Visiting Studio hosted by Ricardo Bak Gordon and Eduardo Cadaval. We faced a diverse, complex neigbourhood that had developed very fast during the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;70s. The municipality asked us to design a library in a site already used by a modest park and a train station. Fitting such different uses in a tight location was a challenge, especially considering that this short strip of park was the only vertebrating spine in the neighbourhood, gridlocked amid huge industrial developments. Instead of splitting the project between train station and library, I allowed these two different spaces to stablish a dialogue. I took advantage of the long platform to stablish a unique relationship between the reading rooms and the waiting commuters, separated by a garden 8m below the ground level.

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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 Jaume Mercader Llobera 2019

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