Six Scripts for Blossfeldt

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Six Scripts For Blossfeldt P. Casey Mahon College of Architecture & Design New Jersey Inst. of Technology Prof. Richard Garber Spring 2009


Course Abstract: In the last five years, formal explorations undertaken by architects have been further enabled by the development of scripting languages that enhance the functioning of popular 3D modeling software. Armed with texts on formal genesis by biologists such as D'arcy Thompson and the botanist Karl Blossfeldt, scripting languages have been used to explore formal development and mutation in biological systems and its relationship to architectural shape grammars. This renewed interest in form, and scripting's capacity to generate forms that are truly 'new' has opened up fresh contemporary discourse on the relationship of architecture with biology. This independent study will add to the discussion through an analysis of microscopic plant phenomena first studied by Blossfeldt in the early 20th century so that synthetic "scripts" can be invented to explain geometrically these formal studies.


Rough Hoursetail

Tower Stacking







Crisium/Phylaxis

Surface Texture







Field Horsetail

Hexagonal Surface Packing







Maiden-Hair Fern

Field Conditions







Italian Alder

Spiraling Organization







Canterbury Bell

Surface Transformations








Six Scripts For Blossfeldt P. Casey Mahon College of Architecture & Design New Jersey Inst. of Technology Prof. Richard Garber Spring 2009

Without the assistance and guidance of several people this project would never have happened: Prof. Richard Garber, NJIT Prof. Henry Grosman, NJIT Chris K. Palmer, U. of Colorado Live Architecture Network Grasshopper3D community


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