AIR
ARCHITECTURE DESIGN STUDIO 3
JESSICA WOOD 389652
CONTENTS PART 1 ARCHITECTURE AND VISUAL CULTURE PART 2 CASE FOR INNOVATION WEEK 1 Architecture as Discourse WEEK 2 Computing Architecture WEEK 3 Parametric Modelling Case for Innovation Conclusion PART 3 RESEARCH PROJECT CUT WEEK 4 Personal Matrix Group Matrix WEEK 5 Reverse Engineer Case Study WEEK 6 CUT Design WEEK 7 CUT Fabrication PART 4 EXPRESSION OF INTEREST CONCLUSION PART 5 PROJECT PROPOSAL WEEK 8 Interrogating the brief WEEK 9 Project Development WEEK 10 Wyndham Proposal Materiality WEEK 11 Project Finalisation WEEK 12 Project Fabrication WEEK 13 Wyndham Proposal Reflection PART 6 LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMES Refrences
PART 1
ARCHITECTURE AND VISUAL CULTURE
DEFINING ARCHITECTURE: ARCHITECTURE AS ART Williams, Richard (2005). ‘Architecture and Visual Culture’, in Exploring Visual Culture: Definitions, Concepts, Contexts, ed. by Matthew Rampley (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press), pp. 102-116
This section comprises my week 1 presentation of the prescribed reading Architecture and Visual Culture. I presented part 1 of the reading - Defining Architecture: Architecture as Art. I utilised modern examples in my analysis to illustrate my points using relevant content that was easier to relate to.
KEY POINTS OF THE READING Nikolaus Pevsner defines it as “buildings designed with a view to aesthetic appeal”. Williams agrees suggests that architects work to “enclose space as well as simply making objects in space”. Architecture combines elements of the other arts but “it is superior to them because it is a synthesis of them all”. Architecture as art is reinforced by institutions of learning as the architect is imagined to be an artist disassociated with the actual construction of the building. Exposure of building types as architecture is limited to large public projects and private house. Everything in between is largely overlooked. Architecture is not found in generic shopping malls, petrol stations, motorways, skyscrapers and speculative housing.
This project is the Winning Entry for the competition to design the new compound for the General Secretariat for the Council of Ministers in Baghdad. Designed by Iraqi Architect Manhal Al Habbobi. This to me represents architecture as art as it is designed with aesthetic appeal in mind, as it seeks to materially represent the story of Iraq.
Architecture as art used to be referring mainly to the façade of a building. Architecture as art is the default way of thinking and architectural writing. Today architecture is still thought of as art by many journal publications, and the viewer has an expectation that the buildings are portrayed as individual works of art that exist independently of the site. Modern architecture is still thought of in similar terms however the focus has since shifted from the façade of the building (as this became less important during the modernist period) to the ‘tectonic’. Architecture exists because the client allows it to exist. Is it really art at all? Architecture is never the work of the architect alone. There is always a team behind every project. But does this make it less qualified to be termed art?
Doge’s Palace, Venice. A fascination of Ruskin’s and an example of architecture as art. Ruskin believed it to have moral purpose and In this way it is a synthesis of various art forms and to me backs up William’s claim, however paintings and sculpture can evoke similar feelings, but it is that architecture combines them into a complete form that is significant.
MY INTERPRETATION OF THE READING At the beginning of this section Williams asks the question – “What is architecture?” This used to be a simple question with a simple answer but recently it has become much more complicated. Why? The discourse of architecture has changed since these first definitions, development of new technologies and ways of thinking about architecture have changed its form, therefore, we cannot define architecture as simply one thing. There is no black and white answer, and this, I think is because architecture is a synthesis of the arts, therefore absorbing the definitions of each element it combines in its conception and construction. Generic – the piece refers to certain types of buildings listed previously as not containing architecture. This I agree with to an extent, an example that springs to mind is “architect designed living” in housing estates. To what extent is this really architecture within the definition as a synthesis of all arts?
Skovshoved Petrol Station, Copenhagen, Denmark, 1936
An example of a petrol station that I think could be refered to as architecture by the definition given in this piece and has successfully resisted the generic form that has been assigned to petrol stations through globalisation.
PART 2
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
WEEK 01
ARCHITECTURE AS DISCOURSE In this section I have considered buildings that I believe to be significant in the discourse of architecture that can be integrated as precedents in our Expression of Interest. These projects are discussed in terms of their use of computer aided design and how that has impacted the discussion of architectural discourse.
GUGGENHEIM MUSEUM BILBAO FRANK GEHRY SPAIN 1997 Frank Gehry is considered a pioneer in parametric technologies, and his Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is an example of new architectural forms that can be achieved using parametric design. To design such a unique structure with a flawless facade required the use of computer aided design to establish the cladding system and design the shapes of the panels that could be employed, to reduce the amount of different panels to relatively few to provide ease in manufacture and construction.
The use of computer aided design allowed Gehry to “translate poetic forms into reality” This ease at which a design can be edited to produce a new outcome is where parametric modelling can be beneficial and efficiently applied. Gehry’s Guggenheim is an example of architecture as art, and is recogised as one of the most important buildings of the 20th century.
“... the good architect requires the scultor’s and the painter’s modes of vision in addition to his own spacial imaginationn. Thus architecture is the most comprehensive of all the visual arts and has a right to claim superiority over the others.” - Nikolaus Pevsner Ghery’s Guggenheim Museum expemplifies this comment by Nikolaus Pevsner, as he has employed all of these modes to create the curvatious, sculptural and expressionistic architecture of this museum.
BEIJING NATIONAL STADIUM “BIRDS NEST” HERZOG & DE MEURON BEJING 2008
“How does it relate to building, or to urbanism, or to town planning, or any of the other mysterious professions of the built environment? lt is a profession, and as such it is inherently exclusive, resisting interrogation from non-initiates. It comes with special institutions and social rituals, not to mention an arcane and exclusive tcchnical language, acquired during a seven-year training. How can we relate to a practice like this?” - Richard Williams
The Beijing National Staduim takes inspiration from chinese ‘crazed pottery’ to arrive at the ‘birds nest’ facade. The circular shape of the staduim represents heaven, making the form relatable to the people and iconic for China.
The pattern of the facade, despite having random appearance, is actually very formulated following strict complex rules from which the geometry is derived. Each half of the stadium is nearly identical and this identicalness is achievable through parametric modelling softwares.
Some may say that architecture is not directly relatable, and I agree that this can be the case, often looking at a building and being left The complexity achieved is rational, and this is an advantage thinking - ‘what were they thinking when they designed this?’ How- of parametric modelling and makes the design possible to ever dispite this being an inevitable part of any architecural expe- fabricate. rience, often it is possible to appreciate what they were trying to achieve, even without architectual knowlege. I think that the Beijing National Stadium achieves this type of appreciation and is a stuning piece of architecture and structural engineering, and it has generated a lot of discussion about parametric modelling as a result.
STUDLY PARK BOATHOUSE PROPOSAL JESSICA WOOD 2011
This proposal for a new Boathouse was designed as the product for ADS2 Water. It is desigened taking precendents from Mario Botta’s style of architecture, specifically mass, natural lighting and his concept of zoning. Designed using Autodesk Revit it is an example of how computer technologies have the ability to streamline the design process, the main feature I found to be helpful was being able to select all the instances of a feature in the project and then edit one or edit the family and they would all update. Although a simple example of computer aided design, I was able to first hand experience how beneficial it can be in making a workflow more efficient.
WEEK 02
COMPUTING ARCHITECTURE
NORWEGIAN WILD REINDEER CENTRE PAVILION SNĂ˜HETTA DOVREFJELL NATIONAL PARK, NORWAY 2011
The brief for project was to design an observation and information pavilion, with its main purpose being to provide shelter to school groups and visitors. This is something that has been achieved rather spectacularly through the integration of sculpted wooden core and the rectangular steel and glass frame. By having a goal for the function of the building the firm was able to explore during its design process to achieve a structure that is functional, beautiful and sympathetic to the environment while creating a landmark; thus adding to the culture of Dovrefjell.
“architecture is recasting itself, becoming in part an experimental investigation of topological geometries, partly a computational orchestration of robotic material production and partly a generative kinematic sculpting of space� - Peter Zellner
As Dovrefjell is home to wild reindeer heards, musk, oxen, arctic foxes and a variety of endemic botanical species the need to observe is important to the function of the design. The history of the site is also important, as national legendes, myths, poetry, music etc.. are grounded in this place. Natural, cultural and mythical landscapes form the basis of the architectural idea. The building design is based on a contrast between a rigid outer shell and a soft organic-shaped inner core. The core is shaped to represent the erosion of rock or ice by natural forces like wind and running water, and this design intent is made possible through the use of computational design technologies.
WEEK 03
PARAMETRIC MODELLING “THE FACADE IS COMPOSED OF 15,000 ALUMINIUM PLATE HEXAGONS, MADE UP OF 1,000 DIFFERENT FAMILIES THAT VARY IN THEIR DIMENSIONS” -fernando romero
Romero set out to produce a contemporary building using the latest technologies to create a memorable structure. To do this he has employed the use of computer aided design (CAD) and has used parametric modelling and design tools to determine the cladding system of hexagonal plates. Parametric design technologies have likely increased productivity for this project, as the 1,000 plate families that have been used can be changed quickly and easily to achieve a new result. Using parametric design tools in this way has the potential to produce iconic forms with complex technologies and simple components, creating different appearances of the building from different viewing aspects. This technology and design techniques and ideals is being used internationally and shows how the nature and perception of achitecture is changing with the availability of new technologies.
Romero’s design breaks away from the the standard volumetric boxes that often become art galleries. Scripting and parametric thinking and technologies has enabled the design and fabrication of this project. Scripting has allowed Romero to design the hexagonal plates in 1,000 different families that make up the facade. The use of parametric technologies has allowed the streamlining of this process and the Soumaya Museum could be example of using scripting for productivity and scripting to the answer. It is an example of how parametric modelling can be used to simplify what may otherwise have been an unmanageably complex facade, and also the direct control that has been applied to the fabrication of the hexagonal plates.
SOUMAYA MUSEUM FERNANDO ROMERO MEXICO 2011 The Soumaya Museum is part of a new culture of design that is furthering the influence of technology in architectural practise. Parametric thinking and technolody has enabled beauitful, complex structures to be achived with relatively simple components. This is expressed in the hexagonal plates of the facade in this project which appear relatively uniform. The apparent complexity perceived by the viewer, within a simple form, makes this project unique and an example of using parametric modeling to create complexity and simplicity simultaneously
“ITS AVANT-GARDE MORPHOLOGY AND TYPOLOGY DEFINE A NEW PARADIGM IN THE HISTORY OF MEXICAN AND INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE” - fernando romero
CASE FOR INNOVATION CONCLUSION
“an organism is so complex a thing, and growth so complex a phenomenon, that for growth to be so uniform and constant in all the parts as to keep the whole shape unchanged would indeed be an unlikely and an unusual circumstance. Rates vary, proportions change, and the whole configuration alters accordingly.� - Thompson This is how parametric modelling functions, change one input and the output changes accordingly to hold the entire object together. This is timesaving and problem solving, allowing shapes that could not be translated via hand drawing on 2D mediums to be realised. The projects that have been discussed as a part of my precedents all used parametric modelling technology to allow them to be fabricated, without it the design and fabrication process would have been impossible. Through these projects I have begun to appreciate the way in which parametric modelling benefits design and construction and brings the deisgner closer to the construction process. The way in which a panel can be simplified and repeated across a surface like in the Soumaya Museum is a technique that could be applied to the Wyndham Gateway proposal.
PART 3
RESEARCH PROJECT: CUT
WEEK 04
A MATRIX OF DEFINITIONS This section contains the matrix of definitions developed as a result of experimenting with different inputs, associations and outputs. I mainly utilised surface patterns, rotation, attractor point and extrusion components to achieve some effective visual effects, and some not so effective. It was very much a trial and error process conducted without much direction.
R O T A T I O N
S U R F A C E P A T T E R N S These effects were achieved using surface pattern inputs applied to various surface shapes. This was my favourite effect and I was able to add different outputs such as extrusion, which is explored next, to create a differnt appearance of the same pattern.
S U R F A C E P A T T E R N S + E X T R U I O N
These experiments utilise the same definition of surface patterns and extrusion. By changing the variables of the definitions I was able to achieve a different effect with minimal effort and time expenditure. I was able to add additional components to the base definition, such as rotation and attractor points, to achive a different effect on the same surface.
V A R I A T I O N S
In the above experiments I have changed the shape of the surface referenced into my definition along with the output shape. Previously I hace only used circles however as I had opportunity to experiment further with Grasshopper I found the spere component. It achieved some interesting effects.
The experiments below utilise the circle output but have a different surface shape referenced in, one similar to a vase type shape. I imagined the circles as perforations that could achive a nice effect with a candle inside the object. Through continued experimentation and development of my skills I became more confident with this technology and was able to appreciate it’s potential more than when I commenced this exercise.
G R O U P M A T R I X
These are the results of the definitions created by my group members Nicole Lindley and Julia Koutroulis. Our matrices all utilise similar definitions but have achieved quite different results. As such we have a wide base of potential options that we can use for our CUT project.
WEEK 05
REVERSE ENGINEER This week is my reverse engineer case study of the BANQ Restaurant by dA. I chose this project because it illustrates the idea of CUT, in which we have to design something using CUT principles.
This project uses contouring to achieve an interesting and complex form which appears to be plastic and moving. Every viewing angle gives a different experience, somthing that we hope to carry through into our CUT project design and our Wyndham Gateway proposal. By creating the three curves in Rhino I was then able to loft them and contour the resulting loft. I then refrenced the contours into Grasshopper and converted them to surfaces which achieved the contoured panel appearance of the BANQ Restaurant.
As a group we would like to carry the concept of movemt through to our CUT project and potentially to our Wyndham propoal. We like the appearance of contoured shapes and believe it can achieve interesting visual effects at high speeds.
WEEK 06 CUT DESIGN
Lines drawn in Rhino to be referenced into Grasshopper
We then projected those lines to create the second edge to loft to in Grasshopper
We started our CUT project by drawing curves in Rhino and then referencing these curves into Grasshopper. We then lofted them and changed them to a surface before creating a surface pattern of circles with the radius responding to attractor points. This was then able to be sent to Fab Lab to be laser cut on 1.8mm boxboard.
WEEK 07
CUT FABRICATION Following the experimentation with coutouring in our reverse engineer case study, we progressed with this technigue to produce a form that consists of 14 separate panels with a perforated circular pattern across the surface. The circular pattern is defined by attractor points and surface divide components. By using this technique of contouring we have achieved a form that represents movement and change, the shadows of the perforation are constantly changing with the direction of the sun, a feature that can be carried forward for our Wyndham propsal. The form is defined by the undulation of the edge, and this creates a sense of movement as the shape curves around itself.
RESEARCH PROJECT CUT REFLECTION
By creating the matrix of definitions I was able to further understand the application of parametric modelling and its benefit in the design process. I was able to easily change a variable to achieve a completely new variation of a design in a matter of seconds rather than the hours that would be required using a 2D design medium. The matrix exercise forced me to develop my skills, which at the time I found frustrating but now am grateful for as I feel I am now able to achieve more and have a greater understanding of how Grasshopper works and how different components can be used together for a specific effect. I became comfortable using surface patterns, rotation and extrusion components to achive a desired visual effect. The CUT reverse engineer project allowed me to develop some new skills in Rhino, specifically contouring. This was not explored in my matrix so I found it beneficial to develop some skills outside of Grasshopper. I was further able to appreciate the benefits of computer aided design in the design process, as we were able to use these contouring skills and apply them to our CUT project along with surface patterns, producing a simple design that showcased the skills we have aquired so far in the semester. Our CUT project fabrication process really began to link my learning to the knowlege we were acquiring, making lectures and readings more relevant as I am now developing an appreciation and understanding for the technology.
PART 4
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
WEEK 08
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST
Our Expression of Interest is comprised of part 2, 3 and 4 of this journal. As a result of looking at precedents, conducting grasshopper experiments, reverse engineering the BANQ Restaurant Case study and fabricating our CUT project, we then started on the final phase of the subject, the Project Proposal. This section contains additional precedents used by the group and our initial concept presented.
Cylinder, is a material representation of sound, and is an example of parametric technologies being used to materialise something that, in this case is invisible. This material representation shows the movement of the sound, something that has been a theme for our CUT project and EOI. CYLINDER ANDY HUNTINGTON & DREW ALLAN 2003
The Experience Music Project by Frank Ghery is constructed from more than 21,000 shaped metal shingles that were cut using digitallydriven-cutting machines. The geometric data used for these shingles was imported directly from the digital model to the cutting machine, and this process is an example of how constructability has become a direct result of computability.
EXPERIENCE MUSIC PROJECT FRANK GEHRY SEATTLE 2000
These are the concept diagrams that we presented for the EOI. Our concept was to represent movement and have a dynamic shape that changes with light and viewing angle offering a unique experience each time. We began our concept by taking a literal translation of Wyndham with a W as the underlying form, lofting it to other modified W’s to create an interesting form that is massive and creates a landmark. The idea of mass became our main concept from this design process and we will further explore this in our Wyndham proposal.
WEEK 08
EXPRESSION OF INTEREST - REFLECTION AFTER MID SEMESTER PRESENTATION
Our group struggled throughout this part of the semester due to lack in skills with Rhino and Grasshopper, lack of understanding in the weekly tasks and also from personal issues that affected the way the group was able to function and the equality of the workload between members. As a result I do not feel that working in a group helped our progress but rather hindered it due to the incompatibility and unwillingness for some group members to meet up to complete the work. We found ourselves extremely frustrated by this and as a result we approached this assessment with resentment. Despite this we tried to gain the most that we could out of the presentation and feedback and were looking forward to hearing our tutors thoughts to help us direct our project in an efficient manner for the remaining four weeks of semester. Our group presentation recieved some valuable feedback that we will take forwards to the design of our Wyndham proposal. Our EOI was concerned with the ideas of dynamism, movement, Firstly, we are going to focus less about what the form should represent and more about the narrative behind our form. Once we develop a concept we can then focus on the actual form and what is physically there and how accessible the aesthetics of the design are. Through observation of other groups work we have decided that a simple and bold form is the most effective for high speed viewing and that intricate details may be lost in translation at 100km/h. Some groups have chosen to direct their projects towards the cultural aspect of the EOI but hearing feedback on these we feel that this is not likely to be the strongest way forward. We want our installation to represent Wyndham and what it has to offer and provide a gateway for the Western Interchange, rather than provide an experience, which while effective and enhancing for Wyndham, it is unrelatable for the users and as such has no real connection with Wyndham and is at risk of being viewed as out of place. We believe that a bold and simple form is likely to be the most effective method of achieving this goal. As a group we like the idea of a cliche as it has resonance with Melbourne and this is something we will explore further in Part 5 - Project Proposal.
PART 5
PROJECT PROPOSAL
WEEK 09
INTERROGATING THE BRIEF
This section covers progress of our Wyndham proposal, from initial interpretation and design through to fabrication. Our driving concept for our proposal is that of a ‘signpost for Wyndham’, which takes into consideration what we believe to be the most important deliverables of the brief. KEY DELIVERABLES - To be eyecatching and exciting - To inspire and enrich the municipality - To enhance the image of the community - To add to the culture of the municipality
The brief places an importance in the relationship between the natural environment, human settlements and industry. As such these elements need to be considered.
IMPORTANT FACTS FROM THE BRIEF What is Whyndham? Whydham municipality comprises six suburbs - Werribee, Hoppers Crossing, Point Cook, Wyndham Vale, Trugania and Tarneit Population: 148,000 Growth Rate: 8000 - 10,000 residents oer year Estimated to become a population of 430,000 residents NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY The Wyndham municipality needs a facelift to improve it’s image. From here we asked the questions - What is the the current image? What needs to change? What are they trying to achieve as a city? We established that the current perception of Wyndham is of a community that is perhaps less upmarket than suburbs to the east of Melbourne and that it is not well known. Therefore we believe that Wyndham is aiming to become a more independant identity and to increase the cultural value of the community. FEATURES OF WYNDHAM - Werribee River - K Road Cliffs - National Equestrian Centre - Point Cook Coastal Park - Heathdale Wetlands - Werribee Park Mansion - Victoria State Rose Garden - RAAF Museum -Cobbledicks Ford
SITE The site is the Western Interchange, the major interchange to Werribee. There are three sites we can choose from that vary in size and shape. The site is viewed by high speed traffic travelling at 100km/h. Vic Roads regulations specify a 13m setback from the road. These are important factors when designing our installation that will impact the form.
OUR DESIGN DELIVERABLES After interrogating the brief we determined that we wanted to design an installation that would be a signpost for Wyndham, to help encourage tourism to the many attractions of the area as well as have a reference to the increasing cultural value of the area. Upon further research into the Wyndam municipality we discovered that Wyndham has a sister city, Chiryu, in Japan. We felt that this was something many people would not realise and as such we waned to represent this side of Wyndham along with it’s more local attractions. From this point we experimented with a form, taking feedback from our mid semester expression of interest presentation. At first we were divided as a group, unsure how much our design was required to use Rhino and Grasshopper. As such we bounced around a few ideas, intermitting patterns, cliche W sculpture, individual sculptures across all three sites, and the concept of stacking blocks. Our preferences were intermitting patterns and stacked blocks, however upon further consideration we decided that we did not have the skills to create an intermitting pattern in four weeks, so we were left with the stacked block concept. We conducted further research into Melbourne City freeway art, finding it to be bold and often cliche. Our concept of a ‘signpost to Whyndham’ lead us to determine the locations of the key attractions of the municipality, and these are shown in the map below. MAP
CHIRYU, JAPAN
HEATHDALE WETLANDS
NATIONAL EQUESTRIAN CENTRE
WESTERN INTERCHANGE - SITE
VICTORIA STATE ROSE GARDEN WERRIBEE PARK MANSION
RAAF MUSEUM
POINT COOK COASTAL PARK
N
WEEK 10
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
VITRAHAUS HERZOG & DE MEURON WEIL AM RHEIN, GERMANY 2009 Vitrahaus influenced our design with the angles, intersections and cantilevers of the design. These aspects were carried through into our ‘signpost for Wyndham’. It is a unique and bold design which achieves what we hope to achieve in our gateway proposal.
ELLIPSOIDAL FREEWAY SCULPTURE JAMES ANGUS & mouldCAM EASTLINK, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA 2007 Ellipsoidal Freeway sculpture is an example of the type of art that is found along the freeways of Melbourne. As a group we feel that we should engage with this artistic culture and greate something that can take reference from this genre to give Wyndham a connection to Melbourne.
WEEK 10
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT This is the first progression from our EOI presentation. We have continued with the W form and applied contouring and lofting to explore the idea of a framework and cladding to achieve a form.
These experiments were concerned with the idea of a framework and constructability alog with form finding. The form is very cliche and appears messy and static, as such we moved away from the idea of a single monolithic mass in our next design idea.
A SIGNPOST FOR WYNDHAM
From the design brief we had established that we wanted to create a ‘signpost for Wyndham’. Our first iteration of this was to take inspiration from our precedent of Herzog and De Meuron’s Vitrahause as an architectural representation of our concept, along with the concept of signposting the attractions of the area.
This iteration of signposting was focused around creating an identity for Wyndham so commuters would know where they were. Hence we took Wyndham’s name and stacked and extruded the letters like a stack of childrens blocks.
Continuing from our idea of signposting we tried to make the installation more artistic and less cliche, changing the literal Wyndham into symbols of the attractions identified in our site map.
Werribee Park Manison
A giraffe
We started producing our symbols in reasonably high detail, limited by our skills in Rhino, however we found that these contained unnecessary detail for the speed at which they will be viewed. We became disenchanted with this idea and explored some other options before returning to this idea of a signpost for Wyndham.
A BOAT FOR WYNDHAM? This idea is taken from the Wyndham municipality logo, a boat with waves. This was a tangent pulled from completely left of field and as such we abandoned it quickly after it was apparrent that it was not the most effective way to meet the studio requirements.
This design option utilises the oportunities of parametric modelling by creating a series of shapes that are free and independent of eachother, yet positioned on the z axis and ‘floating’ in space. In reality this effect is unattainable, requiring connections to the ground. This is the advantage of parametric modelling, it allows you to explore the positioning of objects without having to consider the constructability, and this is also problematic in some cases as you can forget about the basic laws of physics such as gravity, and design something completely un-feasable.
When positioned on the side the visual effect of the boat is lost. We decided to abandon this idea because it did not represent Wyndham and was not original enough. The appeal of this design was its simplicity, making it easy for us to fabricate, however our concept of a ‘signpost for Wyndham’ is stronger and we believe likely to resonate more with the community of Wyndham.
WEEK 10 MATERIALITY
By this point in our project we were considering the fabrication element of the design. As such I carried out some materiality tests using MDF. Although these tests were not carried out by laser cutting, rather by using manual techiques of cutting the MDF with a jigsaw, I was able to appreciate the impact of computer aided design on the production process. We had previously used laser cutting for our CUT research project and the lead time was greatly decreased and made more efficient, and if appled to this experiment it would have dramatically decreased my lead time. Despite this, I think that my experiment achieved the goal of achieving a different visual effect to cardboard and I was able to experiment with the way in which the model was joined. Because this model was at 1:500 scale I was able to glue the pieces together, but if constructed in reality they would likely be bolted together or welded depending on the material used.
My favourite aspects of this material experiment are the intersections of the panels, they intersect seamlessly and create a visual effect that can be experienced at high speeds. This experiment utilised the ‘wave’ section of the boat design. They represent the Point Cook Coastal Park, an aspect of Wyndham that is not well known to many commuters and not the first thing that springs to mind when thinking about Wyndham.
WEEK 11
PROJECT FINALISATION
As the deadline for submission drew closer we finalised the design concept that we were going to present for our final Wyndham gateway proposal. For this we seleced the ‘SIGNPOST FOR WYNDHAM’. This week we spent finalising our design in preparation for fabrication.
Reeds to represent the Heathdale Wetlands
Symbol of the sister city Chiryu in Japan
Werribee Park Mansion
Giraffe to represent the Werribee Open Range Zoo
Boat sails to represent Point Cook Coastal Park
Returning to our ‘Signpost for Wyndham’ concept, we finalised our symbols choosing the five that we believed to be the most diverse range of attractions of Wyndham. We then took these symbols and extruded them with reference to attractor points and controlled the length of the extrusion with a Grasshopper boolean definition. The shapes were extruded in roughly the direction of the attraction from the site, giving us our angles of rotation. We took precedence from Herzog and De Meuron’s Vitrahause and intersected the shapes so that they formed a cohesive whole, rather than separate objects stacked on top of one another. With our final concept computerised, we were then able to fabricate our model both by hand and by sending our file off to be 3D printed. We made our practise model by printing the panels on card and then manually cutting them out at 1:200 scale. Although this fabrication process was not streamlined from computer to cutting machine, we were able to experience the benefit of 3D moodelling as our pieces fit together with reasonable accuracy, only compromised by human error. Without the use of computer aided design we would not have been able to realise our concept as the measurements and angles involved would have been too complicated for us to figure out, especially within the four week timeframe of this project.
WEEK 11
PROJECT FABRICATION
We used Rhino to unroll our model, but we had a lot of difficulty in the way that the model unrolled and we were unable to find a solution in time to get it laser cut which resulted in us printing the nets and cutting them by hand.
SITE MAP
SITE C
SITE B
SITE A
N
This site map shows our model in context on the site. It is situated on site A, the largest site and it is positioned at the western end. The different symbols point in roughly the direction of the corresponding attractions
This was our first attempt at a model, cut by hand from templates made using our digital model. Although we werent able to utilise digital modelling to its full constructability potential, it was immensly helpful as the translation from the digital model to the physical model would have been impossible.
WEEK 11
PROJECT FABRICATION
After the construction of our cardboard model we sent our Rhino file to a 3D printing company to have it 3D printed. This is exactly the point of computer aided design, streamlining the workflow and having a direct impact and control over the construction process. Our model looks fantastic having been 3D printed and we were extremely happy with the result and the time saved through this method of fabrication.
We did however realise that 3D modelling has the tendency to lure you into a false sense of reality. We forgot that the model, printed as a solid, would be top heavy, a problem that we realised only after recieving our model. This we were able to compensate for by gluing it to the base, and in actual construction we propose a frame system with cladding be used so that the objects are hollow.
WEEK 12
WYNDHAM PROPOSAL
We propose a system of frames to construct our design in real life with bracing on the faces to resist bending.
Layout of panels along one side of the sail component
Our 3D printed model. Detail photo of our symbols
SIGNPOST FOR WYNDHAM JESSICA WOOD, NICOLE LINDLEY & JULIA KOUTROULIS ARCHITECTURE DESIGN STUDIO 3: AIR 2012 Our final model. We created symbol to represent the Heathdale Wetlands, a giraffe for the Werribee Open Range Zoo, diamond/hexagon for Wyndham’s sister city Chiryu in Japan, silhouette of the Werribee Park Mansion and the boat sails to represent Point Cook Coastal Park. These shapes were extruded in the direction of the attractions to act as a ‘Signpost for Wyndham’.
WEEK 13
WYNDHAM PROPOSAL REFLECTION
Developing a concept that as a group we all agreed on was challenging, with each member bringing something new and interesting to the table. This gave us a range of ideas to work with however from the beginning we knew that we did not have the skills to realise many of these concepts. We found a close interrogation of the brief to be the most beneficial approach, determining what the key deliverables were and then formulating a concept around these. Our concept was a ‘Signpost for Wyndham’ and I believe that it meets the deliverables we identified as it is a bold, iconic shape that provides a gateway to Wyndham and assists in enhancing its cultural appearance by referencing key tourist attractions as well as discovering a unique opportunity with Wyndham’s sister city Chiryu. The design process was fast, as we only had four weeks in which to determine our concept, design and then fabricate. As a result I feel that we could have taken our concept further if our timeframe had been longer, but I think we produced a concept and design that we can be proud of and one that will resonate with both the people of Wyndham and the council. The use of Rhino and Grasshopper, although challenging, did reduce the fabrication time allowing us to get our model 3D printed. This exemplifies the application of comupter aided design technologies, allowing us to take control of our final form by providing the data for a machine to materialise. This eliminated the human error factor of the construction process, as any error would have to be present in the file used. Digital modelling did however make us forget about basic laws of physics, such as gravity, as we were not thinking of our design as a real object. As such when we got our model 3D printed we found it was top heavy as these were the largest parts of the model. We believe in real construction this can be remedied by constructing the model from frames and having a cladding, making the shapes hollow and ligher. Also in reality the installation would have footings to anchor it to the ground, which our 3D model did not have, giving it a tendency to tip over. Overall I am pleased with the design produced and I found this project to be beneficial in developing my skills in both design and parametric modelling.
PART 6
LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMES
WEEK 13
LEARNING OBJECTIVES AND OUTCOMES
Parametric modelling was completely new to me at the beginning of this semester and I came into this studio with no knowlege of Rhino of Grasshopper and no real understanding of what paramatric modelling was and its possibilities and application. I had previously used AutoCAD and Autodesk Revit, but these are more 2D design platforms so working in a 3D medium was a skill I was looking forward to learning. Over this semester I have developed new ideas about architecture and design, and my new knowlege and undertanding of parametric modelling has opened me to new posibilities that I intend to explore in the future. I found this studio extremely challenging, and I still struggle with using Rhino and Grasshopper, however I have developed a basic understanding of the programs that will allow me to develop my skills in the future. My skills in Illustrator and Indesign have improved throughout the semester, along with my model making skills and photography. This studio has taught me many new skills, however I felt that there was not enough time for me to develop these skills to the standard I had hoped to achieve, particularly my skills in parametric modelling. I find these technologies hard to understand as I am not particularly mathematically minded, but I recognise that being able to design using these programs is a worthwhile skill, and one that I will continue to develop in future projects. I found working in a group challenging and often counter productive as although we divided tasks among ourselves often someone would not complete their share of the work and as such this hindered our progress. We were all guilty of this at some point during the semester, but as a result as a group we fell behind and consequently the workload within the group became uneven with some members contributing significantly more than others. This made progress difficult as we were not able to gain as much feedback in the weekly tutorials as we had hoped, however our tutors were incredibly helpful and I am very grateful for this. I was dissapointed by this studio as I felt that the expectations were unreasonable in the twelve week timeframe, and I did not feel that I was able to devote as much time to the studio as I would have liked. As such I did not develop my skills to the standard I had hoped, however the skills I did gain were enough for our group to produce a piece that we are proud of. The most beneficial skill I feel I have learned is being able to set up a file for laser cutting and 3D printing. The fabrication process was my favourite part of the studio and these techniques I will certainly use in future studios. This studio was challenging, and although I did not particularly enjoy it I feel I have learnt worthwhile skills that I would like to continue to develop to be able to apply them effectively to future projects and take into the workplace. I felt this studio really improved my employability and opened me up to new possibilities as a designer.
REFERENCES PART 1 ARCHITECTURE AND VISUAL CULTURE Williams, Richard (2005). ‘Architecture and Visual Culture’, in Exploring Visual Culture: Definitions, Concepts, Contexts, ed. by Matthew Rampley (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press), pp. 102-116 ArchaID 2012, The General Secritariat for the Council of Ministers, viewed March 6th 2012, http://www.archaid.org/2012/02/12/the-general-secretariat-for-thecouncil-of-ministers-in-baghdad/ TravelDK 2011, Doge’s Palace, viewed 6th March 2012, http://traveldk.com/venice/dk/highlight/doges-palacehttp://en.wikipedia.org/ Wikipedia 2012, Skovshoved Petrol Station, viewed May 31st 2012, www.wiki/Skovshoved_Petrol_Station PART 2 CASE FOR INNOVATION WEEK 1 Guggenheim Museum Bilbao 2012, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, viewed 3rd June 2012, http://www.guggenheim.org/bilbao The Official Website of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games 2008, The National Stadium, viewed March 20th 2012, http://en.beijing2008.cn/cptvenues/venues/nst/ n214078095.shtml ARUP, Beijing National Stadium (Birds Nest), viewed 20th March 2012, http://www.arup.com/Home/Projects/Chinese_National_Stadium/Details.aspx WEEK 2 World Buildings Directory, Norwegian Wild Reindeer Centre Pavilion, viewed March 14th, http://www.worldbuildingsdirectory.com/project.cfm?id=3423 WEEK 3 Design Boom 2011, Soumaya Museum Now Open - Fernando Romero Interview, viewed March 15th 2012, http://www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/9/ view/13930/soumaya-museum-now-open-fernando-romero-interview.html ArchDaily 2009, Soumaya Museum / LAR + Fernando Romero, viewed March 15th 2012, http://www.archdaily.com/33925/soumaya-museum-lar-fernandoromero/ PART 3 RESEARCH PROJECT CUT WEEK 5 Yatzer 2009, BANQ restaurant by Office dA, viewed March 27th 2012, http://yatzer.com/BANQ-restaurant-by-Office-dA PART 5 PROJECT PROPOSAL WEEK 8 Generator.X 2009, Sound as object, viewed April 17th 2012, http://www.generatorx.no/20090811/sound-as-object/ Kolarevic, Branko, Architecture in the Digital Age: Design and Manufacturing (New York; London: Spon Press, 2003) WEEK 9 Nearmaps 2012, Werribee, viewed June 4th 2012, http://www.nearmap.com/ Google Maps 2012, Chiryu Japan, viewed June 2nd 2012, https://maps.google.com.au/maps?hl=en&q=chiryu&ie=UTF-8 WEEK 10 Visual City 2012, Category Archives: Transport, viewed June 3rd 2012, http://www.visualcity.wordpress.com Herzon & De Meuron, Vitrahaus, viewed May 21 2012, http://www.herzogdemeuron.com/index/projects/complete-works/276-300/294-vitrahaus.html Masmechanical Pty Ltd 2008, About Mount Isa, viewed June 3rd 2012, http://www.masmechanical.com.au The Virtual Equestrian 2012, Melbourne Three Day Event, viewed June 3rd 2012, http://www.cyberhorse.net.au The Sun 2010, Giraffe Struck Dead By Lighning, viewed June 3rd 2012, thesun.co.uk MATERIALITY PHOTOS All photos taken by Jessica Wood, June 2012 WEEK 11 - 12 All photos taken by Nicole Lindley and Jessica Wood, May and June 2012