Cain natalie 758360 part a by Natalie Cain

STUDIO AIR 2017, SEMESTER 1, LINDY HAYTER NATALIE CAIN

FIG. 1

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction

A.1 - Design Futuring

A.2 - Design Computation

A.3 - Composition/Generation

A.4 - Conclusion

A.5 - Learning Outcomes

A.6 - Algorithmic Skethbook

References

INTRODUCTION

MY NAME IS NATALIE CAIN AND I AM AN ARCHITECTURE MAJOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. I AM IN MY THIRD YEAR OF THE BACHELOR OF ENVIRONMENTS COURSE. MY INTEREST IN ARCHITECTURE STEMS FROM MY LOVE OF ART AND THE VARIETY AND BEAUTY THAT BOTH FORMS ENCOMPASS. IN MY OPINION, ARCHITECTURE IS A FORM OF ART INSTALLATION, WITH WHICH LIVING THINGS EXPERIENCE AND BECOME AFFECTED BY. WE DISCUSS THE WAY A PIECE OF ARCHITECTURE MAKES A PERSON FEEL THE SAME WAY WE DISCUSS ART. MY ARTWORK ‘UNTITLED’ EXHIBITED AT NGV, IS BASED ON THE RORSARCH TEST, WHICH CHALLENGES VIEWERS TO INDIVIDUALLY MAKE SENSE OF THE INK BLOTS AND PAINTS ON THE CANVAS. I THINK THIS RELATES TO ARCHITECTURE IN THE WAY THAT PEOPLE EXPERIENCE AND APPRECIATE DIFFERENT STYLES AND MOODS IN A UNIQUE WAY, AND THIS SHOULD BE CELEBRATED. ESSENTIALLY, ARCHITECTURE IS A GENERATOR OF DISCUSSION AND DEBATE THAT HAS THE ABILITY TO INFLUENCE PEOPLE. THE DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTATIONAL SOFTWARE HAS ADVANCED THE INDUSTRY OF ARCHITECTURE DRASTICALLY. NO LONGER ARE ARCHITECTS LIMITED TO WHAT THEY CAN DRAW ON PAPER, COMPUTATIONAL SOFTWARE ALLOWS PEOPLE TO EXPERIMENT WITH FLUID AND IRREGULAR SHAPES CREATING DIVERSITY IN DESIGN. THIS HAS RESULTED IN AN EXPLOSION OF NOVEL IDEAS THAT PROVES TO BE AN ENTICING AND EXCITING FIELD FOR STUDENTS SUCH AS MYSELF. CONCEPTUALISATION 4

A.1 - DESIGN FUTURING

“DESIGNERS SHOULD BE THE FACILITATORS OF FLOW”

IN THE STATE OF THE WORLD TODAY, ARCHITECTURE AND DESIGN IS VITAL IN THE PUSH TO EDUCATING AND CREATING A PLANET THAT IS ONCE AGAIN SUSTAINABLE AND ECOLOGICALLY PROSPEROUS. HUMANS TODAY HAVE CREATED AN “ANTHROPOCENTRIC MODE OF WORLDLY HABITATION” THAT PRIORITIZES OUR SPECIES OVER OTHERS1. THIS WILL NOT ONLY ULTIMATELY DETRIMENT OUR SPECIES, BUT THE REMAINDER OF THE ECOSYSTEM. DESIGN FUTURING IS VITAL IN CHANGING OUR THINKING ABOUT THE FUNDAMENTAL NATURE OF DESIGN, WHILST SLOWING THE RATE OF DEFUTURING. COMPUTATIONAL SOFTWARE AND ITS AVAILABILITY TO THE MASSES HAS TRIVIALISED DESIGN TO ITS AESTHETICS. IT IS IMPORTANT AS ARCHITECTS, THAT WE ARE CRITICALLY INFORMED ABOUT HOW ARCHITECTURE CAN IMPROVE THE ECOLOGICAL SITUATION OF THE TIME. DESIGN FUTURING DOES NOT DEMAND AN IMMEDIATE AND HARSH CHANGE, IT MERELY ASKS FOR A REDIRECTION OF IDEALS IN ARCHITECTURE. ONE WAY TO DO THIS IS THROUGH SPECULATIVE DESIGN, WHEREBY PEOPLE USE DESIGN TO STRIVE FOR IMAGINABLE PREFERABLE FUTURES. AS ARCHITECTS, WE HAVE THE RESPONSIBILITY TO AS JOHN WOOD SAYS, TO BE THE “FACILITATORS OF FLOW”, TO ALLOW THE ECOSYSTEM TO PROSPER, FOR BOTH HUMANS AND ALL LIVING ORGANISMS.

1 Tony Fry, Sustainability, Ethics And New Practice, 1st edn (Oxford: Berg Publishers Ltd, 2008), pp. 1

CONCEPTUALISATION 5

CASE STUDY 1 NAME : BARN HOUSE ARCHITECT : CO+LABO RADOVIC DATE : 2012

THIS BARN HOUSE IS A CLASSIC EXAMPLE OF A MOMENT WHEN HUMANS HAVE RIDDEN THEIR MINDS OF OUR ANTHROPOCENTRIC SOCIETY AND DECIDED TO TREAT AN ANIMAL WITH EQUALITY. THE ARCHITECTS HAVE DESIGNED A HOUSE IN WHICH HUMANS AND HORSE COEXIST UNDER THE SAME ROOF. THE HOUSE PROVIDES BOTH WITH THE FUNDAMENTAL NEED OF SHELTER, AND REDEFINES THE ROLE OF THE HORSE.

HISTORY TELLS US THAT A HORSE HAS ALWAYS BEEN A TOOL OR A SLAVE TO THE HUMANS NEEDS. THIS PROJECT CHALLENGES THIS IDEA, AS HUMAN AND HORSE DEVELOP AN INTERDEPENDENCE ON ONE ANOTHER. THE HORSE WILL ROAM THE FIELDS AND ENJOY THE SUNSHINE IN THE SUMMER, HOWEVER, DURING THE WINTER MONTHS, IT WILL SEEK SHELTER IN THE BARN HOUSE. THE MANURE PRODUCED BY THE HORSE IS USED FOR COMPOST WHICH PROVIDES ENERGY FOR HEATING INSIDE IN THE WINTER MONTHS, AS WELL AS FERTILIZING PLANTS. THE BUILDING ITSELF IS COMPRISED OF CHARCOAL, WHICH IS MADE OF SAWDUST. WHEN THIS MATERIAL ABSORBS THE AMMONIAC FROM THE URINE OF THE HORSE, IT BECOMES A FERTILIZER, WHICH WHEN EXPOSED TO SUNLIGHT, CAN BE USED FOR HEATING AND MELTING THE SNOW.2 THIS EXAMPLE DEMONSTRATES THE INTERDEPENDENCE HUMANS HAVE ON OTHER SPECIES, WHICH IS MIRRORED TO A GREATER EXTENT IN THE ECOSYSTEM. THE BREAKDOWN OF ANY SPECIES CAN HAVE A DRAMATIC EFFECT ON THE REST OF THE FOOD CHAIN. THIS THEORY EXTENDS TO FLORA, AND INDEED THE ENVIRONMENT AS A WHOLE. HUMANS HAVE THE ABILITY TO CHANGE THE MENTALITY AWAY FROM HUMAN EXCEPTIONALISM, TO CREATE A WORLD WHERE THE ECOSYSTEMS COHABITATES WITH INCREASED EQUALITY.

FIG. 3.1 2

“BARN HOUSE”, Japlusu.Com, 2017 <https://www.japlusu.com/news/barn-house> [accessed 3 March 2017].

CONCEPTUALISATION

FIG. 3.5

FIG. 3.2

FIG. 3.3

FIG. 3.4

CASE STUDY 2 NAME : PETTING FARM ARCHITECT : 70F ARCHITECTS DATE : 2005-08

FIG. 4.1

THE PETTING FARM RESPONDS TO ITS RURAL NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AND SITS ON THE CONCRETE FOUNDATIONS THAT HOUSED THE PREVIOUS PETTING FARM BEFORE IT BURNT DOWN. THE BUILDING AIMS TO HAVE VERY LIMITED IMPACT ON ITS SURROUNDINGS, WITH AN OPEN FAÇADE SYSTEM ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF THE BUILDING TO ALLOW FOR WIND VENTILATION THROUGH THE BUILDING AND THE REST OF THE FARM. THIS CASE STUDY HAS A SIMILAR IDEA OF COHABITATION, WITH THE PETTING FARM QUARTERS ON ONE SIDE OF THE BUILDING, AND AN OFFICE ON THE UPPER LEVEL ON THE OTHER SIDE.3 THE BUILDING IS DESIGNED FOR THE ANIMALS, AND THUS DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY DOORS. IT SIMPLY HAS SHUTTERS, THAT OPEN AND CLOSE AUTOMATICALLY WHEN THE SUN RISES AND WHEN THE SUN SETS. THE SHEEP GROW TO UNDERSTAND THIS ROUTINE AND CHOOSE WHETHER THEY WISH TO COME INSIDE OR NOT. IT IS UP TO THEM WHETHER THEY WANT TO INVOLVE THEMSELVES WITH THE HUMAN DRIVEN SHELTER, OR EXIST ON THEIR OWN MEANS. THE MOST INTERESTING ELEMENT TO THIS PROJECT IS THE WAY IN WHICH IT LIGHTS UP DURING THE NIGHT. AS THIS IS LOCATED IN DEN UYL PARK, IT IS UTILIZED AS A GUIDING LIGHT OR AN ICONIC LUMINOUS INSTALLATION THAT DRAWS PEOPLE TO THE OTHERWISE RELATIVELY DARK AREA. HERE, WE CAN IDENTIFY THE WAY IN WHICH BOTH HUMANS AND SHEEP CAN BENEFIT FROM A PIECE OF ARCHITECTURE. BY CONSIDERING OTHER SPECIES OTHER THAN OURSELVES, WE CAN PRODUCE NOVEL PIECES OF ARCHITECTURE THAT CONTRIBUTE TO THE ECOSYSTEM. 3 8

“70F”, 70F.Com, 2017 <http://www.70f.com/projects/al0504/al0504.htm> [accessed 3 March 2017]. CONCEPTUALISATION

FIG. 4.2

FIG. 4.3

FIG. 4.4

CONCEPTUALISATION 9

A.2 - DESIGN COMPUTATION DESIGN COMPUTATION ULTIMATELY UTILIZES TECHNOLOGY TO ENHANCE AND CREATE A DESIGN. IT BEGINS IN A DIGITAL MEDIUM, WHICH IS FREE OF A PRECONCEIVED CONCEPT. THROUGH THE ABILITIES OF THE PROGRAMS, WE CAN EXPERIMENT WITH GEOMETRIES, PROPERTIES AND PARAMETERS TO EVENTUALLY ARRIVE AT A DESIGN. NOT ONLY HAS COMPUTATION CHANGED OUTCOMES, BUT IT ALSO HAS CAUSED ARCHITECTS TO BECOME PARAMETRIC THINKERS. FOR EXAMPLE, DESIGNERS NOW THINK OF DYNAMIC RESPONSES TO ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS THAT CAN BE CALCULATED BECAUSE THESE PROGRAMS FACILITATE THIS KIND OF THINKING. INDEED, OXMAN SPEAKS ABOUT THE EMERGENCE OF A “VITRUVIAN EFFECT”4 IN DESIGN, AS A RESULT OF COMPUTERS. DESIGNERS HAVE NOTICED A SHIFT TO THE ORGANIC, WITH A STRONGER EMPHASIS ON NATURAL FORMS AND CURVILINEAR DESIGNS. IT IS AT THE BEGINNING OF THE DESIGN PROCESS, THAT ARCHITECTS ARE CONSIDERING OTHER PROPERTIES ASIDE FROM AESTHETICS. ELEMENTS LIKE STRUCTURE, GEOMETRY AND MATERIAL CAPABILITIES ARE BEING EXPLORED FROM THE OUTSET TO INFORM THE DESIGN, RATHER THAN ATTEMPTING TO FIT THESE INTO THE COMPLETED DESIGN. ENERGY AND STRUCTURAL PERFORMANCE CAN BE MEASURED AND EXPLORED THROUGH COMPUTATION, INFORMING US THE WAYS IN WHICH WE CAN DESIGN ENDURING, SUSTAINABLE ARCHITECTURE.

4 5

“THE AGE OF THE EMERGENCE OF RESEARCH BY DESIGN”

Rivka Oxman and Robert Oxman, Theories Of The Digital In Architecture, 1st edn (London: Routledge, 2014), pp. 1. Rivka Oxman and Robert Oxman, Theories Of The Digital In Architecture, 1st edn (London: Routledge, 2014), pp. 1.

CONCEPTUALISATION

FIG. 6.1

CASE STUDY 1 NAME : ICD/ITKE PAVILION ARCHITECT : ACHIM MENGES DATE : 2010 ORIENTED AROUND MATERIALITY, THIS PAVILION WAS BUILT BASED UPON THE TENSILE STRENGTH AND STRESSES OF PLYWOOD. THROUGH SIMULATION AND PRODUCT TESTING, THE STRUCTURE CONSISTS OF ELASTICALLY BENT PLYWOOD STRIPS, LINKED TOGETHER THROUGH PRECISE DESIGN SLOTS BECOMING JOINTS. THE DESIGN IS INHERENTLY DRIVEN BY THE STRUCTURAL QUALITIES OF THE MATERIAL ORIGINALLY CHOSEN. THE STRIPS OF PLYWOOD ARE DESIGNED AND MANUFACTURED ROBOTICALLY, AND POSITIONED AND CONNECTED IN PLACE WITH ALTERNATING TENSIONED AREAS. THE “FORCE THAT IS LOCALLY STORED IN EACH BENT REGION OF THE STRIP, AND MAINTAINED BY THE CORRESPONDING TENSIONED REGION OF THE NEIGHBOURING STRIP”6 RAISES THE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY OF THE PAVILION. THE STRUCTURE THEREFORE GIVES OFF THIS MESMERISING AND ENERGIZING FEELING OF INDIVIDUAL VULNERABILITY, YET COLLECTIVE STRENGTH. THE SYSTEM ITSELF IS VERY LIGHTWEIGHT, DUE TO THE STORED ENERGY IN THE BENDING PROCESS AND THE ALTERING JOINT LOCATIONS ALONG THE PLANAR PIECES OF PLYWOOD. THIS DESIGN COMBINES THE MATERIAL BEHAVIOURAL ELEMENTS OF PLYWOOD WITH PARAMETRIC THINKING AND PRINCIPLES. TO ESTABLISH THE ELASTICITY AND TENSILE CAPABILITIES OF THE MATERIAL, PHYSICAL EXPERIMENTS WERE CONDUCTED WHICH MEASURED THE DEFLECTIONS OF THE THIN PLYWOOD. UTILISING “4600 LINES OF CODE”7, ALL GEOMETRIC AND STRUCTURAL INFORMATION WAS OUTPUTTED WHICH INFORMED THIS DESIGN. IN THIS EXAMPLE, WE CAN UNDERSTAND THAT THE ARCHITECTS ARRIVED AT THIS DESIGN THROUGH RESEARCHING AND EXPERIMENTATION. IN THIS CASE, THE MATERIAL PLYWOOD WAS CHOSEN, AND THROUGH THEIR STUDY OF ITS TENSILE PROPERTIES, THEY WERE ABLE TO CREATE A SELF-SUPPORTING STRUCTURE WHICH BOASTED STRENGTH, AS WELL AS LIGHTWEIGHT PROPERTIES. THIS PRECISION IN DESIGN WAS FACILITATED BY COMPUTATION.8

FIG. 6.2 FIG. 6.3 6 Achim Menges, “Material Computation: Higher Integration In Morphogenetic Design”, Architectural Design, 82.2 (2012), 47 <https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1374>. 7 ”ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2010 | Institute For Computational Design And Construction”, Icd.Uni-Stuttgart.De, 2017 <http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=4458> [accessed 11 March 2017]. 8 ”ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2010 | Institute For Computational Design And Construction”, Icd.Uni-Stuttgart.De, 2017 <http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=4458> [accessed 11 March 2017]. CONCEPTUALISATION 13

CASE STUDY 2 NAME : SERPENTINE PAVILION ARCHITECT : TOYO ITO AND CECIL BALMOND DATE : 2002 THE DESIGN FOR THE SERPENTINE PAVILION WAS FUNDAMENTALLY BASED UPON AN ALGORITHM OF A CUBE, OR RECTANGULAR PRISM. IT FEATURES BOTH SOLID AND TRANSPARENT GEOMETRIC FORMS THAT INTERSECT TO CREATE THE ILLUSION OF A DECONSTRUCTED CUBE THAT HAS MAINTAINED ITS STRUCTURE. ELEMENTS OF THE CUBE APPEAR TO BE DELETED, PROVIDING LIGHT INTO THE PAVILION. ARCHITECT TOYO ITO JOINED WITH STRUCTURAL ENGINEER CECIL BALMOND TO CREATE A STRUCTURE THAT WAS BASED UPON, AND GREW FROM ALGORITHMIC THINKING AND DESIGN. THE STRUCTURE CONTAINED A STEEL FRAME AS SUPPORT, AND THE CLADDING WAS ERECTED AROUND THIS. THE SPORADIC PATTERN OF THE OPAQUE TRIANGULATIONS AND TRAPEZOIDS CREATE A SENSE OF TRANSITIONAL SPACE, WHERE ONE FEELS NOT ENCLOSED, YET NOT NECESSARILY PROTECTED EITHER.9 THE ALGORITHMIC NATURE OF THIS PAVILION DERIVES FROM THE EXPERIMENTATION AND EXPLORATION OF DESIGN COMPUTATION. THE DESIGNERS BEGAN WITH A SIMPLE GEOMETRY, (A CUBE), AND MANIPULATED AND ALTERED IT UNTIL THEY CAME TO A CONCLUSION, OR OUTCOME. IN GRASSHOPPER, A POPULATED GEOMETRY CAN BE INPUTTED INTO A VORONOI FOR A SIMILAR EFFECT. THE VORONOI CREATES 3D CELLS IN THE GEOMETRY WHICH CAN BE MANIPULATED OR DELETED, SUCH AS IN THIS CASE. WHEN FLATTENED, THE SKIN OF THE PAVILION WOULD BE A SERIES OF INTERSECTING LINES THAT CREATE THE SHAPES FOUND HERE. THIS PAVILION REPRESENTS THE WAY IN WHICH NOVEL IDEAS CAN BE GENERATED THROUGH THE PROCESS OF DESIGN COMPUTATION.

CONCEPTUALISATION

9 ”Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2002 By Toyo Ito And Cecil Balmond With Arup”, Serpentine org/exhibitions-events/serpentine-gallery-pavilion-2002-toyo-ito-and-cecil-balmond-arup

Galleries, 2017 <http://www.serpentinegalleries. p> [accessed 11 March 2017].

FIG. 7.1

FIG. 7.2 CONCEPTUALISATION 15

FIG. 8.1

A.3 - COMPOSITION/GENERATION

ARCHITECTS THROUGHOUT HISTORY HAVE DESIGNED WITH THE BASIC PRINCIPLE OF BALANCED COMPOSITION. STRAIGHT LINES AND SYMMETRY WERE PREVALENT, AND THIS WAS LIKELY DUE TO THE TECHNOLOGY OF THE TIME. IN ORDER FOR THEIR IDEAS TO BE TRANSLATED TO THE BUILDERS, THE DESIGN WOULD HAVE HAD TO BE EASILY COMMUNICATED, DRAWN, AND UNDERSTOOD. THIS WOULD EXPLAIN THE STRONG USE OF LINEARITY AND BALANCED COMPOSITION. HOWEVER, ARCHITECTS TODAY ARE FORTUNATE ENOUGH TO HAVE ACCESS TO 3 DIMENSIONAL SOFTWARE THAT MODELS DESIGNS FOR YOU. CURVILINEAR STRUCTURES ARE EASILY PRODUCED, AND CAN CONTAIN MUCH MORE COMPLEXITY. IN ADDITION TO THIS, DESIGNERS HAVE THE ABILITY TO EXPLOIT THE SOFTWARE TO NOT ONLY AID THEM IN DEPICTING THEIR IDEAS, BUT ALSO IN THE GENERATION OF IDEAS. “COMPUTATION ALLOWS ARCHITECTS TO EXTEND THEIR ABILITIES TO DEAL WITH HIGHLY COMPLEX SITUATIONS”10, AND CAN OFTEN GENERATE UNEXPECTED OR SURPRISING RESULTS. IN THIS COMPUTATIONAL GENERATION MINDSET, THESE SURPRISES ARE WHAT REMAINS EXCITING ABOUT THIS SOFTWARE, AS IT IS OFTEN THROUGH THIS EXPLORATION, THAT A TRULY NOVEL IDEA OR CONCEPT IS FOUND. GRASSHOPPER CAN BE LOOSELY DEFINED AS CREATING RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN ELEMENTS, WHICH IS INFORMED BY RULES. THE POINT ATTRACTOR COMMAND CREATES RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN A POINT AND A SERIES OF ELEMENTS, AND THE REACTION WILL DEPEND ON HOW CLOSE THE POINT IS TO EACH INDIVIDUAL ELEMENT. THIS IS REPRESENTED BY THE BOIDS ALGORITHM. ALTHOUGH THERE ARE MANY BENEFITS TO THE SOFTWARE AND THIS IDEA OF GENERATION, LIMITATIONS EXIST WITHIN IT. FIRSTLY, OFTEN THESE PROGRAMS CAN BE DIFFICULT TO LEARN ALL THE SKILLS AND COMMANDS, WHICH IN THIS CASE CAN CAUSE A STUNT IN DESIGN PRODUCTION. INDEED, THE NOTION OF CREATING SOMETHING THROUGH EXPERIMENTATION MAY SYMBOLISE A LACK OF EMOTION, ORIGINALITY OF THOUGHT OR CONNECTION TO A DESIGN BRIEF. THIRDLY, PATTERN GENERATION AND ELABORATE AND COMPLICATED DESIGN MAY ALSO RESULT IN WASTAGE FROM AN ENVIRONMENTAL PERSPECTIVE, HOWEVER, IT SHOULD BE ARGUED THAT THIS SOFTWARE CAN BE USED TO FIND THE MINIMAL ROUTES, WHICH THUS REDUCES WASTAGE. PROVIDING THE SOFTWARE IS FAMILIAR AND THE USER IS ENVIRONMENTALLY CONSCIOUS, THE SOFTWARE IS BENEFICIAL.

10 Brady Peters, “Computation Works: The Building Of Algorithmic Thought”, Architectural Design, 83.2 (2013), 10 <https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1545>. CONCEPTUALISATION 17

CASE STUDY 1 NAME : SITUATION ROOM ARCHITECT : MARC FORNES DATE : 2014

THE SITUATION ROOM IS AN INNOVATIVE INSTALLATION THAT MERGES ART WITH ARCHITECTURE TO ACHIEVE FASCINATING RESULTS. PARAMETRICALLY DESIGNED, THE FORM IS AN “AGGREGATE OF TWENTY SPHERES OF INCREMENTAL DIAMETERS, COMBINED TO CREATE AN ENVELOPE OF EXPERIMENTAL TENSION.”11 IT IS CREATED BY BOOLEAN OPERATIONS WHICH SUBTLY CONNECT THE SPHERE LIKE SURFACES, RESULTING IN RIGIDITY FROM DOUBLE CURVATURE. THE NETWORKS THAT FORM THE ENVELOPE SUBDIVIDE AND RECOMBINE, TO BECOME THE COLUMNS THAT INVADE THE INTERNAL SPACE AND PROVIDE SUPPORT FOR THE STRUCTURE. AS THE FORM EXTENDS TO THE GROUND IN THE CENTRE, IT FORMS A KIND OF OBSTACLE COURSE FOR THE VISITOR. THE INSTALLATION ITSELF IS LIGHTWEIGHT AND SELF-SUPPORTED, AND IS A STRONG REPRESENTATION OF A SHELL-LIKE STRUCTURE. THROUGH PARAMETRIC MODELLING, THE DESIGN CONTAINS OPENINGS, DIFFERING IN SIZES, TO ALLOW LIGHT AND AIR THROUGH THE SPACE. DUE TO THE OPENINGS WITHIN THE MEMBRANE STRUCTURE, ITS ACOUSTIC MERIT IS HELD HIGHLY, AND IS EVEN UTILISED BY COMPOSERS. WHEN OPEN TO THE PUBLIC, RESONANT SOUNDS ARE PLAYED, ENHANCING THE EXPERIENCE. THE ARCHITECT CLAIMS THAT THE EXPERIENCE OF WALKING THROUGH THIS STRUCTURE “BLURS[ING] ONE’S PERCEPTION OF THE KNOWN.”12 THIS IDEA REMINDED ME OF THE INSTALLATION “DOTS OBSESSION”, BY YAYOI KUSAMA, DISPLAYED AT MONA, TASMANIA. THE WORK USES MIRRORS AND PATTERN ON THE FLOOR, WALLS AND FLOATING OBJECTS TO DISTORT THE VISITORS PERCEPTION OF WHAT IS REAL. THIS IS ONE CLEAR BENEFIT OF PARAMETRIC GENERATION, IT ALLOWS DESIGNERS TO CREATE PIECES THAT SEEM UNWORLDLY, OR UNIMAGINABLE. SOME OF THE IDEAS REMIND ME OF DAINTY, SMALL, TOY LIKE STRUCTURES, THAT ARE BLOWN UP INTO A HUMAN LIKE REALM, HOWEVER, NOW HAVE STRUCTURAL INTEGRITY ON A LARGER SCALE. AND INDEED, THE DAINTINESS AND PRECISION NECESSARY FOR DESIGNS LIKE THIS COULD ONLY BE SUPPORTED BY COMPUTER GENERATION, AT LEAST TO THE STANDARD OF THESE STRUCTURES. PARAMETRIC DESIGN AND COMPUTATION GENERATION ALLOWS ARCHITECTS TO STRAY FROM THE CONVENTIONAL LINE OF BUILDING AND DESIGNING HOUSES. PIECES SUCH AS THIS ONE ALLOW VISITORS TO EXPERIENCE A NEW WORLD, ALMOST LIKE AN ART FORM. ARCHITECTS ARE NOT MERELY CONCERNED ABOUT THE COMFORT OF THOSE WHO ENTER AS THEY WOULD IN A HOUSE, THEY ARE INTERESTED IN LEAVING A STRONG IMPRESSION ON THE VISITOR, TO WHICH I BELIEVE HAS OPENED UP A NEW BODY OF ARCHITECTURE.

11 12

”14 Storefront”, MARC FORNES & THEVERYMANY™, 2017 <https://theverymany.com/14-storefront/> [accessed 14 March 2017]. ”14 Storefront”, MARC FORNES & THEVERYMANY™, 2017 <https://theverymany.com/14-storefront/> [accessed 14 March 2017]. CONCEPTUALISATION 19

CASE STUDY 2 NAME : NINETY NINE FAILURES ARCHITECT : THE UNIVERSITY OF TOKYO DIGITAL FABRICATION LAB DATE : 2013

FIG. 10.1

THIS PROJECT IS ONE THAT IS COVERS THE TOPIC OF COMPUTATION PERFECTLY. THIS DESIGN WAS NOT PLANNED, FAR FROM IT, AND WHAT THIS TEAM LEARNED, WAS THE ENDLESS OPPORTUNITIES THAT COMES WITH FAILING, OR INDEED, MERELY JUST PLAYING AROUND ON GRASSHOPPER. THE TRADITIONAL IDEAS OF PROBLEMS WERE FLIPPED, AND THE STUDENTS WERE ENCOURAGED TO USE THESE ISSUES AS A CATALYST FOR INNOVATION IN DESIGN. LIKE ICD/ ITKE PAVILION, THIS PROJECT WAS FOCUSED ON THE STRUCTURAL PERFORMANCE OF THE MATERIALS. THIS IDEA OF TENSEGRITY CONSTRUCTION ALSO AIDS IN THE IDEA OF CONSERVATION OF MATERIALS. IT WAS ALSO NECESSARY TO INCORPORATE THE USE OF THE FAB LAB, FOR PRECISE RESULTS, AS WELL AS EASE OF CONSTRUCTION. THREE LIGHT, STAINLESS STEEL SHEETS WERE UTILISED ON EACH CLOUD, WELDED TOGETHER AND HYDRAULICALLY INFLATED TO INCREASE THE COMPRESSIVE STRENGTH. THE STRUCTURE WAS ABLE TO FOLD OUT INTO A FLAT PLANE, WHICH WAS CONSISTENT WITH THEIR OTHER POSSIBLE DESIGNS.13 ONCE AGAIN, THIS PIECE OF ARCHITECTURE CONNECTS TO THE ART FORM, AND ALLOWS PEOPLE TO EXPERIENCE A STRANGE REALITY WHEN WALKING THROUGH OR SITTING IN IT. THE EXTERIOR SHELL IS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE BOIDS ALGORITHM, AND ACKNOWLEDGES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ELEMENTS. THIS REPEATED ELEMENT CREATES A GREAT SENSE OF HARMONY AND SOLIDITY, REGARDLESS OF THE FACT THAT THE FORMS APPEAR TO BE FLOATING. EACH ELEMENT IS RELIANT ON THE OTHER IN SOME WAY, AND THE RELATIONSHIP, AND CLOSENESS OF THE ELEMENTS IS IMPORTANT TO THE STRUCTURE.

FIG. 10.2 13

“Ninety Nine Failures / The University Of Tokyo Digital Fabrication Lab”, Archdaily, 2017 <http://www.archdaily. com/469193/ninety-nine-failures-the-university-of-tokyo-digital-fabrication-lab> [accessed 14 March 2017].

CONCEPTUALISATION 21

A.4 - CONCLUSION

MY EXPLORATION THUS FAR, HAS ALLOWED ME TO CONSIDER THE DEVELOPMENT OF STRUCTURES I ONCE THOUGHT TO BE OUT OF MY REACH. THROUGH DELIBERATION OVER DESIGN FUTURING, I AM AWARE THAT GOING FORWARD, IT IS ESSENTIAL THAT I DESIGN NOT ONLY FOR THE HUMAN, BUT FOR THE NATURAL ANIMALS AND PLANTS THAT INHABIT THE CERES SITE. THIS WILL BE POSSIBLE FOR ME TO DO THROUGH DESIGN COMPUTATION AND FURTHER EXPLORATION OF GRASSHOPPER, TO ENSURE I CAN ACHIEVE PRECISE RESULTS THAT COULD POTENTIALLY BE DEVELOPABLE ON A LARGER SCALE. ULTIMATELY, I WOULD LIKE TO DESIGN A SHADING PAVILION THAT DRAWS CONNECTIONS TO MARC FORNES “SITUATION ROOM”. I LOVE THE ORGANIC NATURE OF THE DESIGN, THAT PROVIDES A SHELTER ABOVE, BUT ALSO HAS INTERNAL PARTITIONS TO INTEGRATE THE VISITOR INTO THE DESIGN. THE SLITS WITHIN THE WORK WOULD BE BENEFICIAL FOR ANIMALS OR INSECTS TO INHABIT IF IT WERE A DOUBLE SKINNED STRUCTURE. THE FOLDING OF THE WINGS OF THE BIRD SHAPED PAVILION I CREATED COULD POTENTIALLY ALSO PROVIDE SHELTER TO ANIMALS OR INSECTS. THE INCORPORATION OF THE GLOW IN THE DARK MATERIAL AT NIGHT WOULD ALSO DRAW INSECTS TO THE SITE. ESSENTIALLY, I THINK THIS DISPLAYS INNOVATION THROUGH DESIGNING FOR NOT ONLY THE HUMAN, BUT FOR THE ECOSYSTEM. TO CREATE A SPACE THAT EXCITES AND DRAWS BOTH HUMANS AND ANIMALS TO IT REDUCES OUR ANTHROPOCENTRIC IDEAS.

A.5 - LEARNING OUTCOMES

WITHIN PART A OF STUDIO AIR, I HAVE LEARNED A GREAT DEAL CONCRENING THE ABILITIES OF THE PLUG-IN GRASSHOPPER. THERE IS EVIDENTLY A STRONG CONNECTION BETWEEN MATHEMATICAL FORMULAS AND DESIGN, WHICH HELPS IN THE IDEA OF STRUCTURE AND THE ACTUAL BUILING OF THE STURCTURE. ONE OF THE MOST FASCINATING ASPECTS FOR ME, IS THE WAY IN WHICH YOU CAN SO EASILY TRIANGULATE, OR PATTERN A SURFACE TO CREATE MESMORISING RESULTS. ALL THE CALCULATIONS ARE COMPLETED BY GRASSHOPPER, AND IT ULTIMATELY ALLOWS YOU TO FOCUS ON THE DESIGN. IT IS INTERESTING TO SEE THE SHIFT FROM THE START OF THE SEMESTER WHEN I ONLY HAD A BASIC UNDERSTANDING OF RHINO, TO NOW HAVING EXPERIENCED GRASSHOPPER. THERE ARE SO MANY THINGS THAT YOU CAN CREATE WITH GRASSHOPPER, THAT APPEAR INNOVATIVE AND GEOMETRICALLY INTERESTING. THIS WOULD HAVE BEEN HELPFUL WHEN DESIGNING THE SLEEPING POD IN DIGITAL DESIGN AND FABRICATION, TO CREATE PATTERNED GEOMETRY THAT WAS EASY TO FABRICATE. IT IS AMAZING HOW THRUGH LITTLE PRE-CONCEIVED DESIGNING, YOU CAN CREATE SOMETHING THROUGH CODING THAT IS EXCITING AND MOTIVATING. I SUPPOSE THIS IS THE BENEFIT OF COMPUTATION, AS YOU STUMBLE UPON IDEAS AND DESIGNS THAT DISPLAY MORE INNOVATION RATHER THAN EVEN THE SUBCONSCIOUS WHICH ATTEMPTS TO RECREATE PRECONCEIVED IDEAS.

A.6 - ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

I LIKED THIS EXAMPLE AS IT ADAPTED A GEOMETRIC (IN THIS CASE TWO TRIANGLES) ONTO A LOFTED SURFACE. INSTEAD OF A SIMPLE LOFT, I DECIDED TO ALTER IT INTO THE SHAPE OF THE WINGS OF A BIRD. THIS PROVIDED SHELTER AS TO FIT WITH THE BRIEF, AS WELL AS DISPLAYING A CONNECTION TO THE ANIMALS THAT INHABIT THE SITE. THE IDEA OF TRIANGULAR GEOMETRY ALSO ALLOWS FOR PLACES FOR ANIMALS OF INSECTS TO HIDE OR SEEK WARMTH, LIKE THE FEATHERS OF A BIRD.

CONCEPTUALISATION

I WAS VERY INTERESTED IN THE WAY IN WHICH ONE CAN CREATE GEODESIC PATTERNS ONTO A LOFTED SURFACE. NOT ONLY AM I INTERESTED IN THE TRIANGULAR PATTERNS THAT IT CREATES, BUT ALSO THE WAY IN WHICH IT REPRESENTS THE CONNECTIONS THAT WOULD NEED TO BE MADE IF CREATING A LARGE MODEL. I DECIDED TO UTILISE AN ORGANIC SHAPE FOR THE LOFT, THAT COULD REPRESENT THE ULTIMATE FOUNDATIONS OF A TREE, WITH THE FLUID LINES OF CORAL. LIKE IN THE WORK OF MARC FORNES, I WANTED TO CREATE AN ORGANIC ENVIRONMENT, THAT WOULD BE APPROPRIATE FOR THE CERES SITE.

CONCEPTUALISATION 25

REFERENCES

“14 Storefront”, MARC FORNES & THEVERYMANY™, 2017 <https:// theverymany.com/14-storefront/> [accessed 14 March 2017] “70F”, 70F.Com, 2017 <http://www.70f.com/projects/al0504/al0504.htm> [accessed 3 March 2017] “BARN HOUSE”, Japlusu.Com, 2017 <https://www.japlusu.com/ news/barn-house> [accessed 3 March 2017] Dunne, Anthony and Fiona Raby, Speculative Everything, 1st edn ([S.l.]: MIT, 2013), pp. 1-45 Fry, Tony, Sustainability, Ethics And New Practice, 1st edn (Oxford: Berg Publishers Ltd, 2008), pp. 1-16 “ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2010 | Institute For Computational Design And Construction”, Icd.Uni-Stuttgart.De, 2017 <http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=4458> [accessed 11 March 2017] Kalay, Yehuda E, Architecture’s New Media, 1st edn (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 2004), pp. 5-25 Menges, Achim, “Material Computation: Higher Integration In Morphogenetic Design”, Architectural Design, 82 (2012), 47 <https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1374> “Ninety Nine Failures / The University Of Tokyo Digital Fabrication Lab”, Archdaily, 2017 <http://www.archdaily.com/469193/ninety-nine-failures-theuniversity-of-tokyo-digital-fabrication-lab> [accessed 14 March 2017] Oxman, Rivka and Robert Oxman, Theories Of The Digital In Architecture, 1st edn (London: Routledge, 2014), pp. 1-10 Peters, Brady, “Computation Works: The Building Of Algorithmic Thought”, Architectural Design, 83 (2013), 10 <https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1545> “Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2002 By Toyo Ito And Cecil Balmond With Arup”, Serpentine Galleries, 2017 <http://www.serpentinegalleries.org/exhibitions-events/serpentinegallery-pavilion-2002-toyo-ito-and-cecil-balmond-arup> [accessed 11 March 2017] Wilson, Robert A and Frank C Keil, The MIT Encyclopedia Of The Cognitive Sciences, 1st edn (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT, 2001), pp. 11,12

CONCEPTUALISATION

IMAGES FIG. 1.1 “Parametric”, Parametric, 2017 <http://nparametric.tumblr.com/ post/34778943346> [accessed 15 March 2017] FIG 2.1 Ricos, A, “A Alma Dos Ricos”, Eiriz.Org, 2017 <http://www.eiriz.org/2016/12/ a-alma-dos-ricos_27.html> [accessed 14 March 2017] FIG. 3.1 - 3.5 “Co+Labo Radovic: The Barn House In Hokkaido”, Designboom | Architecture & Design Magazine, 2017 <http://www.designboom.com/readers/thebarn-house-taiki-cho-hokkaido-japan/> [accessed 14 March 2017] FIG. 4.1 - 4.4 “70F”, 70F.Com, 2017 <http://www.70f.com/projects/al0504/al0504.htm> [accessed 3 March 2017] FIG. 5.1 S-Media-Cache-Ak0.Pinimg.Com, 2017 <https://s-media-cacheak0.pinimg.com/originals> [accessed 14 March 2017] FIG. 6.1-6.3 “ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2010 | Institute For Computational Design And Construction”, Icd.Uni-Stuttgart.De, 2017 <http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=4458> [accessed 11 March 2017] FIG. 7.1 -1.2 “Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2002 By Toyo Ito And Cecil Balmond With Arup”, Serpentine Galleries, 2017 <http://www.serpentinegalleries.org/exhibitions-events/serpentinegallery-pavilion-2002-toyo-ito-and-cecil-balmond-arup> [accessed 11 March 2017] FIG. 8.1 “Projects”, Jenny Sabin, 2017 <http://www.jennysabin.com/ new-page/> [accessed 13 March 2017] FIG. 9.1 “14 Storefront”, MARC FORNES & THEVERYMANY™, 2017 <https:// theverymany.com/14-storefront/> [accessed 14 March 2017] FIG. 10.1- 10.2 “Ninety Nine Failures / The University Of Tokyo Digital Fabrication Lab”, Archdaily, 2017 <http://www.archdaily.com/469193/ninety-nine-failures-theuniversity-of-tokyo-digital-fabrication-lab> [accessed 14 March 2017]

CONCEPTUALISATION 27

CONCEPTUALISATION