AIR
ARCHITECTURE DESIGN STUDIO 3
WEEK 01
ARCHITECTURAL DISCOURSE Architecture “encompasses three categories: artefacts, knowledge and practices - all understood as communications that connect to each other in an ongoing recursive network” - Schumacher
architecture as art, sign, communication “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 It is this feature of parametric design that is changing the form and process of designing architecture, and this is why people are talking about it.
WALT DISNEY CONCERT HALL FRANK GEHRY LOS ANGELES 2003
Frank Gehry is considered a pioneer in parametric technologies, and his Walt Disney Concert Hall 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 parametric design to establish the cladding system and design the shapes of the panels that could be employed, to reduce the amount od different panels to relatively few to provide ease in manufacture and construction. This ease at which a design can be edited to produce a new outcome is where parametric modelling can be beneficial and efficiently applied.
BEIJING NATIONAL STADIUM “BIRDS NEST” HERZOG & DE MEURON BEJING 2008 Despite random appearance, each half of the stadium is nearly identical. This identicalness is possible to achieve using parametric design to produce a structure that is simple while appearing to be overly complex.
The initial idea was to design a stadium that was “porous” while also being “a collective building, a public vessel”. In this way it is an example of inspiration being taken from culture, and reinterpreted to produce an iconic landmark.
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.
WEEK 02
A CASE FOR INNOVATION “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
NORWEGIAN WILD REINDEER CENTRE PAVILION SNØHETTA DOVREFJELL NATIONAL PARK, NORWAY 2011
The b obse its m shelt is so spec sculp steel
By having a goal as to the function of the b firm was able to explore during its design to achieve a structure that is functional, be and sympathetic to the environment while landmark; thus adding to the culture of Do
brief for project was to design an ervation and information pavilion, with main purpose being to provide ter to school groups and visitors. This omething that has been achieved rather ctacularly through the integration of pted wooden core and the rectangular l and glass frame.
building the process eautiful creating a ovrefjell.
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
CASE FOR INNOVATION - SCRIPTING CULTURES
SOUMAYA MUSEUM -
“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 bean example of using scripting for productivity and scripting to the answer.
- FERNANDO ROMERO 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
WEEK 04
A MATRIX OF DEFINITIONS
My matrix began with no set direction to achieving an outcome, and through this process I was able to experiment using different components achieving a range of outcomes. Although none of these outcomes directly relate to the Wyndham project, they indirectly have formed the basis for our design ideas.
As my matrix progressed It became obvious that surface patterns applied to an undulating surface achieved the best representation of movement, while those that are rotated and extruded create a more static and massive aesthetic. Both of these affects have been employed to some extent to our CUT project and our Wyndham Gateway project.
WEEK 05
REVERSE ENGINEER
My reverse engineer case study is the BANQ Restaurant by dA. This project uses contouring to achieve an interesting and complex form which appears to be plastic and moving. Every viewing angle vives a different experience, somthing that we hope to carry through in our CUT 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.
WEEK 06
CUT/DEVELOP - FABRICATION
Following the experimentation with coutouring in our reverse engineer case study, we progres with this technigue to produce a form that consists of 14 separate panels with a perforated circ 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 constantly changing with the direction of the sun, a fea that can be carried forward for our Wyndham propsal. The form is defined by the undulation of horizontal axis, and this creates a sense of movement as the shape curves around itself.
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