What is an algorithm

2.2. Algorithmic drawing

Algorithmic drawing is based on the application of a sequence of geometric operations. It is necessary to develop parametric models.

« Parametric modeling is based on the creation of of relationships between the elements. The designer can use parameters defined to change intuitively or not the shape or behavior of an object. The elasticity of the parametric model makes it easy to introduce changes and develop many opportunities or to run different simulations. »2

In order to be able to deal with the rest of this paper, it is necessary to clarify what an algorithmic or parametric model represents.

a. What is an algorithm The word algorithm comes from the name of an Arabic mathematician Muhammad Ibn Mūsā al-Khuwārizmī (algo-) and from griek arithmos (number ; — rythm)

« A set of operating rules whose application solves a stated problem by means of a finite number of operations. An algorithm can be translated, using a programming language, into an executable program by a computer. »3

To summarize, an algorithm is a series of simple steps that tend towards a result.

b. Algorithmic or parametric Although parametric and algorithmic architecture often form a whole, it is important to differentiate them historically. The algorithmic architecture is the result of an operating system while the parametric aspect implies the possibility to change and influence the results of these operations. However, if algorithmic design is linked to the use of computers, this is not the case with parametric design. It can indeed be related to physical models where the parameters are tangible elements that modify the shape of a model adapted to the size of a laboratory. This method is found in particular in the design of Gaudí’s Sagrada Familia or in Otto Freï’s catenary structures, which are considered as the precursors of a new movement theorized by Patrik Schumacher and named Parametricism.

Example of an algorithm for subdividing a polygon into a triangles2