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Architecture Thesis Prep School of Architecture Dissertations and Theses

12-2014

Open Tectonics Open Tectonics

Steven O'hara

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Open Tectonics

Steven O’HaraProfessor Roger Hubeli

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Table of Contents

Part 1: Introduction

Abstract

Thesis

Definitions

Organization

Part 2: Explications

Practice of jigging

Project of the open assembly

Theory of articulation

Part 3: Manifestations

Projections

Site

Program

Part 4: Ambitions

Bibliography

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Part 1: Introduction

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Tectonics is the project of following rules. It is the process of accepting what is given to us and making the best of it. We, as architects, assemble these

predetermined components without question, albeit with potentially great results, but there is more latitude to these rules than we realize. What if our components

were special? What if each subdivision of architecture was like a component on a spaceship; tailored and considered, necessary for the life of the project. What if

its existence, experience, and investigation brought us life and curiosity? What if we felt like explorers of endless curiosity, every day of our lives?

Tectonics is “the science or art of construction, both in relation to use and artistic design—not only the activity of making the materially requisite construction

that answers certain needs, but rather to the activity that raises this construction to an art form.” (Maulden)

Themeansofproducingthecomponentsofconstructionrequiresaprocessofdesign.Itrequiresscientificexperimentation,engineering,chemistry,

physics, and more. But it is not architecture. This thesis holds that architecture is the effect achieved by the thoughtful and intentional assemblies and constructions

of these components, for human use. However, when beginning to question these components, one must concede that the components of construction are too

well designed and time-tested to be overturned by a single thesis. The tools which form and manufacture these artifacts are too well developed and proven over

thousands of years to be reasonably questioned to any productive end. The manufactories and markets speak too clearly to waste time denying the practicality of

steel, concrete, and lumber. But this does not mean that we must accept whatever they produce, it only means that we must intervene with greater knowledge of

thepractices—ofhowsteelismilled,howlumberisprepared,howglassisfloated,andhowtheseallinterface.

The invisible variable in this equation is the jig. It is not the material, it is not the tool, and it is not the design; it is the artifact which enables the interface

of the three. It is here that the designer and the architect can produce variation in the closed world of tectonics. If the architectural potentials of construction

componentscanbeopened,andtheproblemsofdifferentassembliescanbesolved,infinitenewpotentialsemerge.Theworldoftectonicssuddenlyopens.The

rules are changed, specialized, and simultaneously made more accessible. The linear relationship between the designer, producer, and constructor becomes

cyclical, and the architect has the opportunity to choreograph the process.

By understanding the materials, processes, design, and jigging of building components, the limitations of actualizing designs can be eroded, challenging

the relationship between designer, builder, and user.

Abstract

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The idea of open tectonics will be explored through

three lenses of practice, project, and theory. These

lenses will be the criteria of decision-making

throughout the design process.

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Theory of articulation

Practice of jigging

Project of the open assembly

Open Tectonics

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Part 2: Explications

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FORMWORK

Jig: (n) a device that holds a piece of work and guides

the tools operating on it. -Oxford Dictionary

The process of making and using a jig involves a

design intention, a tool, a material, and a physical or

digitalobjecttoserveastheguideandfixture.

The jig is conceptually and practically distinct from

formwork. For the purpose of this study, the jig will be

the focus of research.

GUIDE FOR TOOL PATH

LIQUID MATERIAL

FIXTURE FOR MATERIAL

MOLD

JIG

+

=

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Jigdefinition

Physical

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A digital model or line drawing is also a jig, by

definition.Itguidesthepathofamechanizedtool.This

thesis acknowledges a continuity between physical

and digital fabrication, and the concept of the jig is an

important piece in understanding this continuity.

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Jigdefinition

Digital

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Aparticularjigcorrespondstoaspecifictool.This

necessitates an understanding of tool, material, and

design goals to make use of the jig.

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Jigs + tools

Physical

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‘Digital fabrication’ follows the same rules, with

specificpotentialsandlimitationsofmaterial,design

geometries, and tooling. In order to emphasize the

continuity between digital and physical fabrication, this

thesis holds that ‘digital jigging’ is a more accurate

conception of the processes known as ‘digital

fabrication’

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Jigs + tools

Digital

Physical

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The proper combination of jigs, tools, and materials

enables repeatability, precision, and potentially

irregular geometries for the actualization of a given

design. In the production of architectural components,

the jig is constantly present.

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*large hydraulic machine guiding placement of roller

*

Jigs + tools + materials

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Design intention, tools, materials, and jigs form a

matrix of fabrication and production processes. Each

must inform and be conscious of the other. This thesis

willinvestigatetheextentoftheinfluenceofdesign

intention and jigging on architectural components,

accepting the practicality of existing tooling and

materials.

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ToolingDesign intentions

MaterialPhysical or digital jigging

Jigs + tools + materials + information

Matrix of relationships

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Within the basic matrix of building production and

fabrication, different projects demonstrate different

hierarchies of value. The open tectonic project

proposes a restructuring of this hierarchy within

architectural discourse.

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Jigs in architecture

Tectonic Project Formal Project Open Tectonic Project/ /

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The tectonic project uses regular objects, methods,

and geometries as a means to the end of following the

logics, qualities, and nature in a spatial context.

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Tectonic Project

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c

b

a

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Tectonic Project

a+b c

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, S.R. Crown HallChicago, USA 1950-1956

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The tectonic project values material and tooling most

highly, with the jig as the next necessary (yet invisible)

variable. Design intentions, while undeniably powerful,

aim to architecturally manifest the existing logics of

material, production, and construction processes.

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ToolingDesign intentions

MaterialPhysical or digital jigging

1

4

3

2

Tectonic Project

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The formal project uses regular objects, methods,

and geometries as a means to the end of actualizing

non-regular formal and spatial aspirations.

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Formal ProjectFrank Gehry, Fondation Louis Vuitton

Paris, France 2006-2014

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a

dc

b

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Formal Project

a

d

c

b

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ToolingDesign intentions

MaterialPhysical or digital jigging

2

1

4

3

Formal Project

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The open tectonic project proposes to shift the

hierarchy of the fabrication matrix. Material must

necessarily drive the designs, but the architectural

intentions for the material has the opportunity to be

in closer dialogue, due to the higher value placed on

determining factor of the jig.

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Open Tectonic Project

ToolingDesign intentions

MaterialPhysical or digital jigging

1

2

3

4

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The assembly of building components, no matter their

nature of production, is at the root of architecture.

The caribbean hut was Gottfried Semper’s study

of the origins and archetype of man-made space.

The dinstinction between structure and cladding are

important to the development of this thesis, and will be

used as a means of analysis.

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Archetypal assemblyGottfried Semper, Caribbean Hut

Study, 1851

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The distinction between primary and secondary

structure is essential to understanding the nature of

building assembly. It is a practical reality of the creation

of space, and of mediating primary structure and

panelized cladding.

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Archetype

Primary structure Secondary structure

Panelized cladding Assembly

Archetypal assembly

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As architectural components begin to be re-jigged,

certainflexibilitiesmustemergeintheprocessesof

assembly. Pictured left is an example of a completely

open assembly. Nearly anything can be added

or subtracted, while maintaining the integrety of

the design and construction. Pictured right is an

example of a limitedly open assembly, which is able

toberedesigned,changed,andmodifiedwithinthe

parameters of its design and constructional integrity.

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Open assemblies

Shanty, Johannesburg, South AfricaCirca 2000

Charles and Ray Eames, Case Study House #8 (Eames House)PacificPalisades,USA1945-1949

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AssemblyAssembly

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Primary structure

Secondary structure

Panelized cladding

Primary structure

Open system: no limitations Semi-open system: construction limitations

Secondary structure

Panelized cladding

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Thisexistsincontrasttohighlyrefinedworksof

architecture,towhichmodificationisdifficultor

impossible--technologically or architecturally.

Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, S.R. Crown HallChicago, USA 1950-1956

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Closed assembliesFrank Gehry, Fondation Louis Vuitton

Paris, France 2006-2014Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, S.R. Crown Hall

Chicago, USA 1950-1956

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AssemblyAssembly

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Primary structure

Closed system: design, technology, and construction limitationsClosed system: design limitations

Primary structure

Secondary structureSecondary structure

Panelized claddingPanelized cladding

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AssemblyAssembly

This thesis intends to position its assemblies along this

spectrum, creating an architecture that is designed

and intentional, while embracing the values of

improvisation.

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AssemblyAssembly

Open Tectonic Project

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ASSEMBLYSUPPRESSED

details

whole

details/ornament

details

whole

details/design details/order

details

whole

Detail as abstraction Detail as an orderDetail as motif

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Complimentary to this thesis is an

architectural ambition, which guides the

directions and decisions of re-jigging.

Edward Ford’s theory on the categories of

details is important in the consideration of

new assemblies.

The detail as joint is of particular interest

to this thesis. This focus enables an

architectural theory to guide the nature

of the assemblies engendered by the

study of the jig’s role in the production of

architectural components.

Theory of details

ASSEMBLYARTICULATED

detailswhole

details/architecture

detailswhole

details/architecture

Detail as joint Detail as autonomous design

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Drawing from David Pye’s concept of energy

transformations in The Nature of Design, the

articulation of assemblies can also articulate statically

contained energy within assemblies. The project of

open tectonics seeks to enhance this aspect of spatial

experience with the alteration of the components and

their assemblies.

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Articulation of energy

Peter Zumthor, Stalinset MemorialAssemblies are articulated in a way that expresses the forces of and between components

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There is energy contained in all structures, but as

with assembly, it must be intentionally articulated or

suppressed. Within this assembly, one can almost feel

the materials and components straining to mantain

stasis.

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Articulation of energy

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Part 3: Manifestations

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*large hydraulic machine guiding placement of roller

* *a b

If the material (steel) and tooling (milling rollers) are

kept constant, what latitude is there to change the

designofawide-flangesteelsection?Thejigging,in

this context, is the information guiding the placement

of the rollers.

63

Wide-flangebeamstudies

b

a

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Rollers could move in and out, creating swells and

dips, moving in harmony or dissonance.

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Wide-flangebeamstudies

a

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Depending on the speed by which the steel passes

through the rollers, multiple nodes could be developed.

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Wide-flangebeamstudies

a

68

By varying the angle of the rollers, an ad hoc quality

begins to emerge out of the rigidity of the I-section.

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Wide-flangebeamstudies

b

70

Typical assemblies and components provided a

valuable starting-point in developing the focus of open

tectonics.

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Exterior cladding (protective finish)Vapor barrierStructural rigid diaphramStructure

Heat barrier (insulation)Interior cladding (rough finish)Interior finishTrim (tolerance cover)

Exterior cladding(protective finish)

Vapor barrier

Heat barrier (insulation)

Interior finish

Trim (tolerance cover)

Assembly studies

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If the fabrication of basic joints was re-jigged, how

would this affect the openness of the assembly?

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Open assembly studies

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The idea of overlapping panels is a potentially fruitful

area in the idea of openness. The construction,

tolerances, and qualities are greater than precise

reveals or butt-jointss.

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Open assembly studies

76

In exploring the articulation of assemblies, as well as

theenergywithinassemblies,specificmaterialswere

hypothesized as existing exlusively in compression or

tension. This idea is consistent with the nature of a

truss, and a mash-up ermerged.

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Articulation study

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Syracuse Regional Market structures are clear projects that follow existing guidelines of components and assemblies.

Contexts for intervention

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The market halls were designed and constructed with

varying proportions of architectural intention and utility.

They range from the delightfully simple...

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Contexts for intervention

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... to the sparsely grand...

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Contexts for intervention

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... to the tastefully utilitarian...

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Contexts for intervention

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... to the strictly engineered.

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Contexts for intervention

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Part 4: Ambitions

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Myambitionsforthisprojectaretodevelopasimple,cohesive,highlyspecificanddevelopeddesign.

Concetely, some of the products will include:

Large scale axonometric drawings of assembly and space, large enough to feel human scale

Large scale model, using non-representational materials, but materials that communicate, in miniature, the atmosphere of the space

Many, many iterations for the three aspects of the project: jigging, open assemblies, and articulated energy

Studies of site usage, to determine how openness ought to apply to the Syracuse markets

And as a reminder to myself:

DO DISCOVERY REALISM DON’T INVENTION SURREALISM

Ambitions

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Bibliography

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Aranda, Benjamin, and Chris Lasch. Tooling. New York: Princeton Architectural, 2006. Print.

Bastea, Eleni. Memory and Architecture. Albuquerque: U of New Mexico, 2004. Print.

Bostwick, Ford, “Shapes of Gray: Concepts in Concrete” (2013). Senior Theses. Paper 162. http://surface.syr.edu/architecture_theses/162

Burry, M. (2014), The Architectural Detail and the Fear of Commitment. Archit Design, 84: 134–141. doi: 10.1002/ad.1792

Cadwell, Mike. Strange Details. Cambridge, MA: MIT, 2007. Print.

Corbusier, Le, Peter De Francia, and Anna Bostock. The Modulor. Cambridge, MA: Harvard UP, 1954. Print.

Ford, Edward R. The Architectural Detail. New York: Princeton Architectural, 2011. Print.

Ford, E. (2014), The Grand Work of Fiction: The Detail as Narrative. Archit Design, 84: 26–35. doi: 10.1002/ad.1778

Hartoonian, Gevork. Ontology of Construction: On Nihilism of Technology in Theories of Modern Architecture. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1994. Print.

Hopkins, Stacey, “On Memory and Architecture” (1996). Thesis Prep. Paper 167. http://surface.syr.edu/architectue_tpreps/167

Keetman, Peter, Armin Kley, Dirk Nishen, and Rolf Sachsse. Volkswagen, a Week at the Factory. San Francisco: Chronicle, 1992. Print.

Kieran, Stephen, and James Timberlake. Refabricating Architecture: How Manufacturing Methodologies Are Poised to Transform Building Construction. New York:

McGraw-Hill, 2004. Print.

Koolhaas, Rem, and Bruce Mau. “Typical Plan.” S M L XL: OMA. S.l.: S.n., 1993. 335-69. Print.

Merin, Gili. “Peter Zumthor: Seven Personal Observations on Presence In Architecture” 03 Dec 2013. ArchDaily. Accessed 04 Nov 2014. http://www.archdaily.

com/?p=452513

Mihalyo, Daniel. Wood Burners. New York: Princeton Architectural, 1997. Print.

Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Embodied Image: Imagination and Imagery in Architecture. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons, 2011. Print.

Pallasmaa, Juhani. The Thinking Hand: Existential and Embodied Wisdom in Architecture. Chichester, U.K.: Wiley, 2010. Print.

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Pye, David. The Nature and Art of Workmanship. S.l.: S.n., 1968. Print.

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