1.Architecture as a discourse
Each time we enter a new era, different spaces and trends emerge with changing societies and times. The architecure of the previous era becomes history and the architecture of the new ear comes to represent the city planning and architectural space of a new age. It is obvious that functions of architecture between ancient and nowadays are totally different. In ancient times, architectures just acts as shelters. Now we put soul into architectures. “Architecture needs to be thought of less as a set of special materials products and rather more as range of social and professional practice that sometimes�, architects give architecture more significances. The history of architectures is likely the history of human history. Architecture fuses lots of inspirations from many fields, such as topography, climate, materials, culture, circumstance, humanistic background and religion. Therefore, we could read out many information from an architecture. It just like a discourse between us and architecture.
CCTV Headquarter
To be honest, this is a strange profile. Chinese call it Big Underpants. However, it still was enrolled in 2007 World Architecture miracle Top Ten. CCTV Headquarter was designed by Rem koolhaas, Ole Scheeren and OMA, finished in 2009. This is a shape-peculiar and novelty construction building. A lot of high and new technology are used on this architecture. Total steel amount hit to 125 hundred thousand tons, there is no same one steel member in them. It is the unique in the world. If architect did not use parametric technology, it is not possible to be achieved. The most important is, innovation. Nowadays, functions of the CCTV building are mainly composed two parts, five-star hotels and television cultural center. Construction of CCTV built by many different irregular rhombus, fishing net-shape metal scaffolds. These scaffolds were accorded precise calculation and as main body structure, they were exposed outside. As Ole said, this kind of integrate structure could lead pressure flow through system and then find out a best way to transmit to underground. The connection of two towers of the main building just take experience from bridge technology. Well, if the connection part could be seen as bridge, this is quite a huge bridge. Part of connection is 11 floor high and has a 75 meters long cantilever. This design scheme never ever appeared before, so that Beijing council specially set up a group to consider. Because this kind of cyclotron structure did have no construction regulation to follow in world-wide architecture. Therefore, people always take it as a typical representative when they call Beijing is Oriental Goldfileds and experimental filed for foreign architectures since this project. A judge of CCTV Headquarter design competition deems that this scheme could represent a kind of spirit, which displayed from China since new period.
Future Urban Space-Galaxy SOHO
The most significant characteristic of the information age is increasingly intimate human communication. The ting need most is the spirit of unity and cooperation, the ability to consultation and interact. The city space in the information age is the ultimate integration of the material and the spiritual, it is multi-faceted, open-minded and blended. Similarly the architecture of this ear is multi-dimensional, free and parametric. These kinds of structure permit the complete extension of human communication, unlike the rigid relationships, straight lines and flattened way of thinking encouraged by the architecture of the past. This new architecture induces a complete change in our way of life. This type of gathering and interchange produces a fiery collision of wisdon generating an accumulation of societal advencement and intimately fusing the material with spiritail. Galaxy SOHO created by Zaha Hadid and architectural firm, finished in 2009. This is an obviously parametric project. One of the design concepts of the project is to create an internal world reflecting the theme of the Chinese courtyard. At the same time, the project is very much a design of the 21st century - no longer working with rigid blocks and the spaces bewteen these blocks, but working with soft and malleable volumes which coalesce, fuse, pull apart and connect with multiple stretched bridges in order to create a world of synchronized adaptation and fluid movement within. Its profile is soft but also full of power, four monomers integrate into a grant entirety. Another inspiration of design comes from Chinese traditional terraces. Parametric design itself refines natural form by modern digital technology, then fuses modern civilization. In this project, floors are full of transformations and spreading, they group with each space very dynamically, just as terraces in mountain. The architectural approach for this project is to create an ensemble of individual volumes that blend together to create a more monumental whole. The separate volumes each has its own atrium and cores, but merge together at various levels, providing shaded outdoor plateaus and internal spaces with dramatic views. The shifting and moving plateaus, multiple levels shift into each other’s view forming a deep sense of envelopment and immersion with an environment of stimulation. The architecture unfolds below, above, and into layers in all directions with a logic of continuity and multi-level curvi-lineraity. It is a 360-degree architectural world which has no corners, no disrupted transitions, but in which everything evolves- very much inspired by nature. The project is comprised of deep vistas that are formulated by hundreds of meter of interests in all direction. The strategy here is to creat a space of easy flow and easy orientation. One discovers an interplay of light and shadow, of closed and open space while moving within the volumes. Nowadays, Galaxy SOHO is an advanced huge complex which including commerce and offices. As an iconic architecture in Beijing urban center, Galaxy SOHO absolutely will bring big impact to the skyline of Beijing. The large pattern of urban is a challenging problem, because an individual is not quite in tune with vast Beijing. Four tower-shaped monomers connect each other dynamically could display a kind of meaning, that is interchange and communication with each other. It is so exciting that these two projects have been landscapes of Beijing, advancing design concepts, incredible appearances, make them as bling as stars in Beijing.
2. Computational Architecture
Almost ten years ago, rapid development and popularity of computer technology makes Auto CAD join in architectural filed successfully. Computer Aided Design was one of the best invention ever during the development of computer. Because of computational design, the quality of design raise greatly, manner of work simplify greatly, working environment and information carrier have changed totally. Since 2D digital design software was approved, 3D design software not only enriches the design software family but also it is subversive. Nowadays, we can see computer as a medium, it integrates and connects gaps between each stages during design. As personal opinion, parametric is the tool to build a connection in architecture, hence it makes a more continuous process. During experiences from reading, I have a thought about almost things could be quantization, things which cannot be quantization is not easy to evaluate. In theory, it will be continuous as you can quantify it. Of course, there are a lot of things you can not quantify in architecture filed. Parametric will not instead of traditional design, it is supplement, which try to quantify better and more continuous. This is absolutely an architectural design evolution, as a very cutting-edge technology, parametric design not only brings innovate technology, but also untraditional creation manner and the way of thinking. Therefore, it brings so many kinds of potential possibility for design of architecture.
3. Parametric modeling
Parametric is a “set of equations that express a set of quantities as explicit functions of a number of independent variables, known as “parameters”. Therefore Parametric modeling is the model of parameters (variable). It is not the model which set and analyze by mathematic, and changing some parametric values simply in modeling to build a new one. Parameters could be geometrical parameter and some attribute parameter such like temperature and materials as well. Nowadays, the application of parametric modeling is in wide range more and more. Although the developing time is so short, the speed is so breathtaking. Boldly to say, it is time to change design. This is the evolution of design which base on the technical restoration. In my opinion, present design environment under the current society condition is very complex, fickle and rapid. Parametric modeling quite suits it and this is the demand of this age and technical characteristics. Therefore, parametric modeling is the certain result which could optimize society resources and increase production efficiency. Parametric modeling could apply complex and organic forms commodiously, this is no easy without any parametric design. Moreover, it could create plenty of selections efficiently. Because if you have designed out parametric modeling, the time that create 10 project selections mostly equals to the time that create 100 project selections. Architects do not need to waste time to care about if the project is as one likes, the only thing they need to care is the parametric relation between input and output. Parametric design is an emerging concept of design process in which the parameters are interconnceted as a system. One parameter’s change will affect the whole network and cause global influence. It creates systematic, adaptive variation, continous different (rather than mere variety). and dynamic fuguration from the scale of urbanism to scale ot architecture, interior and furniture. The architecture of the information age is multidimensional and parametric. It consists of multi-faceted, open-minded and blended spaces pregnant with the entirely new future era. While prople, in our day in age, are pushed into unprecedented rapid unheaval, this upheaval is not a singn of the end of civilization. On the contrary this upheaval is conducive to the release of “inner human potential”, and reveals “human destiny and outstanding talent” in tis full and universal sense.