stones jordan 640811 part b

CONTENTS

PART A_ CONCEPTUALISATION

A1_DESIGN FUTURINGA2_DESIGN COMPUTATIONA3_COMPOSITION & GENERATION A4_CONCLUSIONA5_LEARNING OUTCOMESA6_APPENDIX - ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

PART B_ CRITERIA DESIGN

B1_ RESEARCH FIELDB2_CASE STUDY 1.0B3_CASE STUDY 2.0B4_TECHNIQUE - DEVELOPMENT B5_TECHNIQUE - PROTOTYPES B6_TECHNIQUE - PROPOSAL B7_LEARNING OBJECTIVES & OUTCOMESB8_APPENDIX - ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

PART C_ DETAILED DESIGN

C1_DESIGN CONCEPTC2_TECTONIC ELEMENTS & PROTOTYPES C3_FINAL DETAIL MODELC4_LEARNING OUTCOMES & OBJECTIVES

I II

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ABOUT ME

JORDAN WILLIAM JAVIER STONES

I AM CURRENTLY UNDERTAKING A BACHELOR OF ENVIRONMENTS OF THE UNIVER-SITY OF MELBOURNE, WHILST WORKING PART-TIME AS A KITCHEN DESIGNER IN MEL-BOURNE'S WEST.

I WAS RAISED IN A SMALL COUNTRY TOWN IN VICTORIA. IT WAS DURING MY TIME AT SECONDARY SCHOOL THAT MENTORS BEGAN TO FOSTER MY CREATIVITY IN DESIGN, CONSTRUCTION AND LITERARY SUBJECTS. MY DESIGN WORK IN VCE CAME PRIMARI-LY FROM A STUDIO ARTS SUBJECT, FOR WHICH MY WORK WAS SELECTED AS PART OF NEXT GEN ART EXHIBITION FOR 2012.

AS PART OF MY DEGREE I HAVE DEVELOPED A RUDIMENTARY SKILL BASE WITH DIGITAL DESIGN PROGRAMS SUCH AS REVIT, AUTO CAD, SKETCHUP AND ILLUSTRA-TOR, RHINO, GIMP AND OTHERS. AS PART OF MY WORK I AM REQUIRED TO DESIGN COM-PREHENSIVE KITCHEN PLANS ON 20 20 DESIGN SOFTWARE. THIS PROCESS IS ALMOST ENTIRELY DIGITAL, RANGING FROM THE MEASUREMENT OUTSETTING TO THE FINAL REN-DERS. WORKING WITH SUCH A PROCESS HAS GIVEN ME SOME INSIGHT INTO DIGITAL ARCHITECTURE IN PRACTICE.

I AM EXCITED TO CONCEIVE A DESIGN WITH NO EMPERICAL RESOLUTION. US-ING THE VIRTUAL SPACE WITH PARAMETRIC MODELLING WILL GRANT A FREEDOM THAT I HAVEN'T EXPERIENCED BEFORE WITH ARCHITECTURE BEFORE.

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PART A_ CONCEPTUALISATION

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A1_ DESIGN FUTURING

THE BANQ RESTAURANT IS A FULLY INTEGRATED EXAMPLE OF PARAMETRIC MODELLING IN AN INTERIOR SPACE. THE UNDULATING CURVES THATSPAN THE CEILING FORM A FLUID PIECE OF FICTION THAT VEILS STRUCTURE AND CREATES A HOMELY AMBIENCE IN WHICH TO DINE. ALTHOUGH SEEMINGLY RANDOM, THE TECHNICAL PRECISION OF ELEMENTS IS PRAGMATIC IN APPLICATION, AS IT CONFORMS TO THE STRUCTURAL NECESSITIES BENEATH. THIS SENSE OF ILLUSION IS PREVALENT THROUGHOUT THE MODERN FORM, AS MANY BUILDINGS SPORT EXTERIOR SKINS FOR AESTHETIC APPEAL. THE REAL SENSE OF ILLUSION COMES IN THE FINISHED BUILT FORM. THIS IS IMPORT-ANT BECAUSE IT INFORMS THE EXPERIENCE OF THE SPACE; THE TRANSPARENCY OF THE ROOM CHANGES AS PEOPLE TRAVERSE IT.

THE FLOOR SPACE IS DESIGNED PRIMARILY AROUND FLEXIBILITY. THIS HAS STRONG LINKS TO THEORY FOR DYNAMICS AND HIGH TURNOVER FLOWS IN A RESTAURANT ENVIRONMENT. THERE IS HOWEVER A TENDER BALANCE BETWEEN THIS FLEXIBILITY AND THE NECESSARY FEATURES OF THE SPACE.

"THE INSPIRATION THAT ULTIMATELY RECONCILED THE TOPOGRAPHY OF THE CEIL-ING WITH THE DESIRE TO CREATE SOMETHING TRANSCENDENT WAS VERY SIMPLE, IT WAS THE INTERSECTION OF THE EXTRAORDINARY WITH THE TOTALLY CONVENTIONAL".1

THE CONTRIBUTION TO THE SITE WAS ONE OF RESPECT; AN ACKNOWL-EDGEMENT AND SOLUTION TO A PROBLEM. BEYOND THIS SOLUTION, THE DESIGN IS ONE OF EVOLUTION. IN LINE WITH THE DIVERSITY OF FOOD CHOICES SERVED AT BANQ, THE PARAMETRIC SHAPES HELP TO DEVELOP THE STYLE OF WHAT A NEW AGE RESTAURANT CAN BE.

"THE CEILING'S ARCING SURFACES COMPRISE JUST ANOTHER LAYER IN A RE-CENT, AND RICH, LOCAL ARCHITECTURAL HISTORY".2

1 “Banq,“ David Sokol, australian design review, last modified June 30, 2009, http://www.australiandesignreview.com/interi-ors/661-banq. 2 “Banq,“ David Sokol, australian design review, last modified June 30, 2009, http://www.australiandesignreview.com/interi-ors/661-banq.

PRECEDENT 01BanQ Restuarant by Office dA

Location: Boston, MA, USAProject Design: Nader Tehrani, Monica Ponce de Leon

Figure 2: John Horner, BanQ, 2009, photographs, http://www.archdaily.com/42581/banq-office-da/.

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A1_ DESIGN FUTURING

JEANNE GANG'S AQUA TOWER IS A COMPREHENSIVE EXAMPLE OF HOW A PARAMETRIC FORM CAN PERFORM AN INTEGRAL FUNCTION OF A BUILD-ING WHILST REMAINING HONEST, SIMPLE AND ATTRACTIVE. THE BASIC YET REVOLUTIONARY FORM OF WATER RIPPLES LED TO THE AQUA TOWER BEING AWARDED THE EMPORIS SK YSCRAPER AWARD IN 2009. THE RIPPLES PER-FORM A PRAGMATIC FUNCTION FOR BALCONY VIEWING IN AN OBSCURED HIGH DENSITY AREA, WHILST REFERENCING THE FORMS OF LIMESTONE

OUTCROPPINGS ON LAKE MICHIGAN.

THE BUILDING IS A PROJECT SPECIFICALLY FOR THE RESIDENT. DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS WITH PEOPLE AND COMFORT IN MIND HAVE ENSURED THAT THE PARAMETRIC SURFACE IS NOT SIMPLY A LAYER OF MAKEUP. AQUA TOWER IS THE TALLEST SKYSCRAPER IN THE WORLD TO BE BUILT BY A

WOMAN. IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT GANG'S WORK IS REVOLUTIONARY.

"SKYSCRAPERS ARE TRADITIONALLY SEEN AS AN EXPRESSION OF OVERBEARING MALE LIBIDO, A SORT OF MINE'S-TALLER-THAN-YOURS COM-PETITION. SO, EVEN TODAY, IT IS A SURPRISE TO FIND A WOMAN BUILDING SO

SWAGGERINGLY HIGH". 1

THE PARAMETRIC DISTINCTNESS AND FLUID PRAGMATISM ELEVATE THE AQUA TOWER TO A NEW LEVEL IN THE HIGHLY COMPETITIVE CHICAGO SKY-

LINE.

1 Aqua Tower " the tower that Jeanne Gang built," Jonathan Glancey, the guardian, last modified 21 October, 2009, http://www.theguard-

ian.com/artanddesign/2009/oct/20/aqua-tower-jeanne-gang.

PRECEDENT 02Aqua Tower by Studio Gang Architects

Location: Chicago , IL, USAArchitect of Record: Loewenberg & Associates

Project Leader: Jeanne GangProject Year: 2007 - 2009

Figure 5: Dave Wilson, Aqua Building Abstract, 2011, photograph, http://www.davewilsonphotography.com/2011/03/28/aqua-building-abstract-chicago/.

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A2_ DESIGN COMPUTATION

THE DESIGN PROCESS IS SOMETHING IN WHICH TIME PLAYS A PIVOTAL ROLE. IN RELATION TO COMPUTING AND DIGITAL ARCHITECTURE, TIME CAN BE MANIPULATED TO MAXIMISE THIS PROCESS. OUR BRAIN CAN PRODUCE ENDLESS POSSIBILITIES AND VARIATION OF ITS OWN ACCORD, HOWEVER WITH THE AID OF DIGITAL COMPUTATION WE ARE ABLE TO ACCESS THESE VARIATIONS IN A SHORTENED AMOUNT OF TIME. THIS AFFECTS THE DESIGN PROCESS DRAMATICALLY, AS SOME ARGUE THAT IT ENRICHES IMAGINATION AND CREATIVITY, WHILE OTHERS MAINTAIN THAT ENDLESS VARIATION IS NOT CONDUCIVE TO REAL DESIGN AND PRODUCES UNORIGINAL SELECTION BASED DESIGN. USING THE PROJECT FOR TEATRO COLONAS AS AN EXAMPLE (FIGURE 6,) I WOULD ARGUE FOR THE FORMER. THE PROJECT PRESENTS A CLEAR ENGAGEMENT WITH COMPUTATIONAL METHODS OF DESIGN, YET REMAINS HIGHLY ORIGINAL, ABSTRACT AND SPECIFIC. THE PROJECT IL-LUSTRATES HOW VARIOUS MANIPULATIONS OF A SIMPLE SPHERICAL FORM CAN RESULT IN A COMPLEX, UNIFIED AND STIM-ULATING DESIGN. ALTHOUGH UNBUILT, THE PROJECT FOR TEATRO COLON REPRESENTS BOTH THE MAJESTY AND INTIMACY THAT CAN BE ACHIEVED WITH COMPUTATIONAL PROCESS. NO MATTER THE INTERPRETATION, COMPUTING HAS BEEN USED TO REDEFINE PRACTICE. COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN HAS OPENED A GATEWAY TO PEOPLE WORKING IN VARIOUS FIELDS WITH VARIOUS SKILLS; INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO MATHEMATICS, SOFTWARE DESIGN, CODING, PHYSICS AND GRAPHIC DE-

SIGN. CONVENTIONAL DRAFTING PROGRAMS OR TECHNIQUES ARE COMPARABLY FAVOURED BYARCHITECTS AND ENGINEERS, WHEREAS PARAMETRIC MODELLING SYSTEMS CAN SUIT THOSE VERSED IN

COMPUTATIONAL PRACTICE.

"WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF DIGITAL SPACE MAKING AND FORMAL VARIATION THE DESIGN WORLD HAS SEEN A SIGNIFICANT SHIFT OVER THE PAST TWO DECADES FROM STANDARDIZATION TO CUSTOMIZATION". 1

1 Tristan Al-Haddad , " PARAMETRIC MODULATIONS IN MASONRY," Cumincad (2008): 221.

PARAMETRIC DESIGN BY DEFINITION UTILIZES ALGORITHMIC THINKING TO DEFINE CUSTOMIZED PARAMETERS AND EN-CODE SPECIFIC MEANING TO A DESIGN RESPONSE. IT IS FOR THIS REASON THAT VARIATION IS SO PROMINENT AND THEREFORE NOT IMMEDIATELY COMPATIBLE WITH A STANDARDISED CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY. HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM OF VARIATION EXTENDS TO BOTH THE CONSTRUCTION AND DESIGN INDUSTRY. LIKE THE PROJECT FOR TEATRO COLON, A MODERN SKY-SCRAPER (FIGURE 7) ALSO REMAINS UNBUILT. THE SKYSCRAPER DEMONSTRATES HOW BENEFITS OF COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN ARE OFTEN UNRECOGNIZED OR ARE ONLY PURSUED TO AN EXTENT BEFORE A STANDARDISED INDUSTRY TAKES OVER. THIS MODERN SKYSCRAPER PRESENTS A HUGE OPPORTUNITY HOWEVER. THE DIGITAL DESIGN PROCESS REVOLVED AROUND THE DYNAMIC FORCE OF EXPLOSIONS AND DISTORTION OF SHAPE IN EXPLOSIONS. UTILIZING A COMPU-TATIONAL METHOD OF EXPERIMENTATION MEANS THAT DESIGNS CAN BE CONCEIVED AS MICROCOSMS FOR MUCH

LARGER INSPIRATIONS. THIS IS WHERE CONVENTIONALITY FALLS SHORT.

"SINCE TRADITIONAL DESIGN SKILLS WILL NOT BE ABLE TO DESIGN MATERIALS AT THE MACRO AND MICRO LEVEL, MACHINE LEARNING ALGORITHMS WILL BECOME MORE CRITICAL IN THE DESIGN PROCESS." 1

DESIGNERS MAY THEREFORE BE FORCED TO CHOOSE BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL METHODS OF DESIGN CONCEPTUALIZATION AND THE DIGITAL PARAMETRIC COUNTERPART. HOWEVER, THERE IS AN IMPORTANT MIDDLE GROUND IN THE BINARY HERE. THIS IS WHERE SYSTEMS SUCH AS ARCHITECTURE REVIT OPERATE. THIS PROGRAM IS A DRAFTING TOOL AT ITS CENTRE, BUT

ALLOWS FOR THREE DIMENSIONAL ENGAGEMENT WITH A DESIGN AND ITS STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS.

1 Alfred Andia, Ph.D, "Automated Architecture: Why CAD, Parametrics and Fabrication are Really Old News," Blucher Design Proceedings 1 (2014): 83.

PRECEDENT 03Project for Teatro Colón Competition by Xefirotarch

Principal: Hernan Diaz AlonsoProject Year: 2013

PRECEDENT 04Modern Skyscraper SOFI by Danny Karas

Principal: Hernan Diaz AlonsoProject Year: 2011

Figure 6: Xefirotarch, Project for Teatro, 2011, rendering http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.ezp.lib.unimelb.edu.au/doi/10.1002/ad.1776/abstract.

Figure 7: Danny Karas SCI-Arc , Modern Skyscraper SOFI, 2011, rendering, http://super-architects.com/archives/4746.

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A3_ COMPOSITION & GENERATION

ARCHITECTURAL PRACTICE IS NO STRANGER TO COMPUTER AIDED SYSTEMS OF DESIGN. RANGING FROM THE 1960S ONWARDS, COMPUTER AIDED SYSTEMS HAVE BEEN UTILIZED BY ARCHITECTS TO REFINE

DESIGNS FROM PEN AND PAPER TO THE SCREEN AND BACK AGAIN.

"ARCHITECTURAL EDUCATION HAS TRADITIONALLY GIVEN MORE ATTENTION TO EUCLEDIAN AND PROJECTIVE GEOMETRIES, WHICH ARE USED IN THE GENERATION OF ORTHOGONAL CONSTRUCTION DOCUMENTS AND PER-SPECTIVE ILLUSTRATIONS OF BUILDINGS. RECENTLY, HOWEVER, THERE HAS BEEN A GROWING INTEREST IN

OTHER TYPES OF GEOMETRY, ESPECIALLY IN TOPOLOGY". 1

ONLY NOW IS COMPUTER GENERATION PLAYING A PIVOTAL ROLE IN THE CONCEPTION OF SUCH DESIGNS. THIS SHIFT FROM A COMPOSITION TO A GENERATION OF IDEAS SPARKED THEORETICAL AND PRACTICAL DEBATE. IN RELATION TO THEORY, DISSENTERS HAVE ARGUED THAT THE ADOPTION OF COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN REMOVES AN ESSENTIAL ANTHROPOCENTRIC ELEMENT REGARDING ORIGINALITY. THIS CRITIQUE ARGUES THAT ARCHITECTS ARE NO LONGER DESIGNERS AND ARE RATHER SELECTORS. PRACTICALLY, SOME HAVE ARGUED THAT COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN PRODUCES FORMS THAT ARE NEITHER CULTURALLY SIGNIFICANT NOR PRAGMATICALLY VIABLE. THIS APPROACH IS SHALLOW HOWEVER, AS A MOVE TOWARDS COMPUTA-TIONAL DESIGN AROSE IN CONJUNCTION WITH A GLOBALISED ARCHITECTURAL LANGUAGE. SHOWN IN FIG-URE 8 AND 9 IS MICHAEL HANSMEYER'S 'SUBDIVIDED COLUMNS; A NEW ORDER'. THEY USE AN ALGORITHMIC PROCESS TO TRANSFORM A CONVENTIONAL DORIC COLUMN INTO AN ORNATE

AND OUTRAGEOUSLY SOPHISTICATED NEW COLUMN.

"THE RESULT IS A SERIES OF COLUMNS THAT EXHIBIT BOTH HIGHLY SPECIFIC LOCAL CONDITIONS AS WELL AS AN OVERALL COHERENCY AND CONTINUITY". 2

HANSMEYER'S COLUMNS REPRESENT THE ENOURMOUS COMPLEXITY ACHEIVABLE THROUGH COM-PUTATIONAL DESIGN, AND FURTHERMORE ILLUSTRATE THAT SUCH DESIGNS CAN BE PHYSICALLY

GENERATED. 1 G, Di Cristina, Architecture and Science (New York: Wiley, 2001), 1.

2 'Algorithmic Architecture,' Riley (Johnstonarchitects), johnstonarchitects, last modifed March 8, 2011, https://johnstonarchitects.wordpress.com/tag/algorith-mic-architecture/.

PRECEDENT 05Subdivided Columns “ A New Order by Michael HansmeyerLocation: SeattleJohnston ArchitectsProject Year: 2011:

Figure 8: Michael Hansmeyer, columns1, 2011, rendering, https://johnstonarchitects.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/columns1.jpg. Figure 9: Michael Hansmeyer, columns2, 2011, rendering, https://johnstonarchitects.files.wordpress.com/2011/03/fabricated_columns2.jpg.

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A3_ COMPOSITION & GENERATION

IN AN ERA WHERE ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN IS SPURRED BY BIOMIMICRY AND BIOPHILLIA, DESIGNERS ARE LOOKING TOWARDS THE COMPLEXITIES OF NATURE FOR INSPIRATION. ALGORITHMIC THINKING IS AN APPROACH BY WHICH COMPLEX GEOMETRIES CAN BE ACHIEVED THROUGH SIMPLE DATA, SO CELLULAR STRUCTURES OR NATURALLY OCCURRING PATTERNS CAN BE REPLICATED TO GREAT EFFECT. 3D PRINTING IS IDEALLY SUITED FOR ALGORITHMIC FORM; BE-CAUSE "IN 3D PRINTING COMPLEXITY COMES FOR FREE, WHEREAS IN ARCHITECTURE COMPLEXITY COMES WITH A COST".1 SOFTWARE LIKE RHINO AND GRASSHOPPER IS ALSO GREATLY SUITED FOR SUCH MODELLING. SHOWN IN FIGURE 10 AND 11 IS ANGEL QUINTANA'S VISIONARY WORK USING RHINO AND GRASSHOPPER. DE-SIGNED FOR 3DMETRICA, QUINTANA'S WORK IS EXEMPLARY OF THE INTERACTION WITH NATURE THAT TRANSPARENT AND FLUID COMPUTATIONAL ARCHITECTURE CAN ACHIEVE. OFTEN REFERRED TO AS VIRTUAL ARCHITECTURE, THE ALGORITHMIC PROCESS HERE ENCOMPASSES THE ANALOGY OF FLOWER PETALS. IN A SIMILAR VEIN, PARAMETRIC MODELLING HELPS TO ELUCIDATE DESIGNS THAT MAY HAVE BEEN OTHERWISE UNACHIEVABLE. THROUGH A SERIES OF DEFINED PARAMETERS OR ALGORITHMIC ENCASINGS, PARAMETRIC MODELLING ALLOWS FOR A VIRTUAL YET EMPIRICAL PROCESS OF COMPLEX GENERATION. THESE PARAMETERS ARE ACHIEVED THROUGH SCRIPTING CULTURE, THAT IS; "THE CAPABILITY OFFERED BY ALMOST ALL DESIGN SOFTWARE PACKAGES THAT ALLOWS THE USER TO ADAPT, CUSTOM-ISE OR COMPLETELY RECONFIGURE SOFTWARE AROUND THEIR OWN PREDILECTIONS

AND MODES OF WORKING".

"SCRIPTING AFFORDS A SIGNIFICANTLY DEEPER ENGAGEMENT BETWEEN THE COM-PUTER AND USER BY AUTOMATING ROUTINE ASPECTS AND REPETITIVE ACTIVITIES, THUS FACILITATING A FAR GREATER RANGE OF POTENTIAL OUTCOMES FOR THE

SAME INVESTMENT IN TIME".2

1 'What is Algorithmic Design?,' Sivam Krish, Generative Design, last modifed March 11, 2012, https://generative-design.wordpress.com/2012/03/11/algorithmic-design/. 2 Mark Burry, Scripting Cultures: Architectural Design and Programming, (Melbourne: John Wiley & Sons, 2013), C1.

PRECEDENT 06Project for 3DMETRICA by Angel QuintanaLocation: Mexico CityProject Year: 2012

Figure 10: Angel Quintana, Project for 3DMETRICA, 2012, rendering, http://www.cgarchitect.com/content/portfolioitems/2012/02/46116/02_large.jpg Figure 11: Angel Quintana, Project for 3DMETRICA, 2012, rendering, http://www.mimdap.org/wp-content/uploads/9669.jpg

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A4_ CONCLUSION

THROUGH THE COURSE OF PART A: CONCEPTUAL-IZATION, I HAVE EXPLORED JUST SOME OF THE VAR-IOUS WAYS IN WHICH COMPUTATIONAL ARCHITEC-TURE CAN BE APPLIED, INTERPRETED AND LEARNT FROM. MY INTENDED DESIGN APPROACH IS NOT SET IN STONE. I PLAN TO AFFORD A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF EXPLORATION TO BIOMIMICRY AND BIOPHILLIA, HOW-EVER I ALSO DESIRE TO FLESH OUT DIFFERENT MATE-RIALS. I AM HOPING TO ARRIVE AT A SORT OF MIDDLE GROUND WITH MY DESIGN APPROACH. I AM SEEKING TO RECONCILE DESIGN AND MATERIALS IN ORDER TO CREATE SOMETHING WITH BOTH FLUID FORMS AND POCKETS OF INERTIA. I BELIEVE THAT THIS APPROACH WILL ALLOW ME TO LEARN GREATLY ABOUT PARA-METRIC DESIGN IN REGARDS TO APPLICABILITY AND CONSTRUCTABILITY IN A PHYSICAL SENSE. I DO HOW-EVER HOLD THE RESERVATION THAT THIS STUDIO IS NOT PRIMARILY CONCERNED WITH CONSTRUCTION IN AN INDUSTRY CONTEXT, SO I DONT PLAN ON GIVING IT TOO MUCH THOUGHT.

A5_ LEARNING OUTCOMES

ARCHITECTURAL COMPUTING IS SOMETHING STILL RELATIVELY NEW TO ME. HAVING EXPERIENCED SOME SECOND HAND GRASSHOPPER WORK IN PREIV-IOUS YEARS, I THOUGHT I KNEW WHAT TO EXPECT IN RELATION TO DESIGN GENERATION. IN REGARDS TO PARAMETRICS, HOWEVER, I HAD PREVIOUS-LY CONSIDERED IT AS NOTHING MORE THAN SCULPTUR-AL ELEMENTS GENERATED WITH COMPUTERS. THIS DID NOT MEAN I DIDN'T RESPECT IT'S CAPABILITIES THOUGH. SINCE MY TIME IN THIS SUBJECT STARTED, I HAVE COME TO REALISE THAT PARAMETRIC DESIGN AND ARCHITEC-TURAL COMPUTING ARE COMPREHENSIVE AND THEORET-ICALLY SOUND RESPONSES TO SOLVING DESIGN PROB-LEMS. I RECOGNIZE COMPUTING NOW AS A MEANS OF DESIGN ITSELF, NOT SIMPLY A MEANS TO COLLAB-ORATE AND REFINE PREVIOUS WORK. ALGO-RITHMIC THINKING IS SOMETHING I AM YET TO FULLY UNDERSTAND, HOWEVER AT THIS STAGE I AM WILLING TO MAKE FULL USE OF ITS COMPOSITIONAL OPPORTUNI-

TIES FOR MY PROJECT.

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A6_ ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

ABOVE ARE MY FIRST ATTEMPTS AT LOFTING. I CHOSE THIS SKETCH BECAUSE IT DEMONSTRATES THE BASIC SHAPE THAT I AM HOPING TO MANIPULATE AND RE-

FINE AS THE SEMESTER GOES ON. IT IS COMPLEX AT ONE END AND GRADUALLY LEVELS OUT AT THE OTHER. MY FIRST THOUGHTS ARE THAT IT WILL

MIMIC PARTS OF THE RIVER BANK AT MERRI CREEK. AT LEFT IS MY FIRST ATTEMPT AT CREAT-ING A GRID SHELL. THIS WAS BASIC EXPERIMEN-TATION WITH BOTH RHI-NO AND GRASSHOPPER. AFTER EXPLORATION OF THIS FORM I HAVE SUCCESSFULLY RULED IT OUT AS AN AVENUE

TO PURSUE.

ABOVE IS MY COMPLETED GRIDSHELL FOLLOWING AN ONLINE TUTORIAL. I INCLUDED THIS SKETCH BECAUSE IT REPRESENTS MY FIRST ATTEMPT AT A COMPLEX DEFINITION, AND IT TOOK APPROXI-MATELY 2 HOURS TO COMPLETE. THE FORM ITSELF ALSO BUILDS ON MY ORIGINAL CONCEPTIONS FOR A FINAL FORM.

ABOVE IS A PIPING EXPERIMENT FORMED BY DIVIDING A GEOMOTRY AND OFFSETING A POLY POINT, THEN JITTERING THE CONNECTING LINES AND PIPING THEM. THIS FORM ALSO ALLOWED ME TO EXPERI-MENT WITH COLOUR PALETS.

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REFERENCES

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PART B_ CRITERIA DESIGN

2019

B1_ RESEARCH FIELD

BIOMIMETIC ARCHITECTURE IS THE CONTEMPORARY DESIGN FORUM OF PHILOSOPHICAL AND PRACTICAL MEANS IN WHICH DESIGN RESOLUTIONS ARE INITIATED FROM NATURAL PROCESSES. NOT CENTRALLY CONCERNED WITH PHYSICAL EMULATION, BIOMIMICRY RATHER EXTRACTS ITS TRUE INSPIRATION FROM THE UNDERLYING RULES WHICH GOVERN NATURE AND NATURAL ENTI-TIES.

A KEY OPPORTUNITY OF PURSUING BIOMIMETIC ARCHITECTURE REVOLVES AROUND CONCEPTIONS OF TRUE AND UNHINDERED NOTIONS OF BEAUTY. "A TRUER UNDERSTANDING OF HOW WE SEE, WITH OUR MIND AND EYE, IS THE FOUNDATION OF EVERYTHING ORGANIC. MAN'S EYE AND BRAIN EVOLVED OVER AEONS OF TIME, MOST OF WHICH WERE WITHIN THE VAST UNTRAMMELLED AND UNPAVED LANDSCAPE OF OUR BIOSPHERE!"1 FOLLOWING THIS LINE OF REASONING, BIOMIMICRY IS SEEN AS THE TOOL WITH WHICH A COMPROMISE CAN BE REACHED BETWEEN THE PREVIOUS PRO-GRESSIONS OF ARCHITECTURE AND AGE OLD IDEALS OF BEAUTY. THIS IS SEEN IN 'MAPLE LEAF SQUARE CANOPY' BY UNITED VISUAL ARTISTS (FIGURE 12), WHICH USES COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN TO ABSTRACT THE GEOMETRY OF LEAVES AND GIVE THE SENSE OF WALKING THROUGH A FOREST AT DUSK.

HOWEVER, BIOMIMETIC ARCHITECTURE IS NOT ONLY CONCERNED WITH PETITIONS FOR NATURAL BEAUTY. BY EXTENSION OF ITS DISPOSITION TOWARDS NATURAL PROCESS AND GOVERNING RULES, BIOMIMICRY SEEKS TO UTILIZE NATURE TO RESOLVE A BUILDING'S FUNCTIONALITY. AS SEEN IN THE CD/ITKE RESEARCH PAVILION AT THE UNIVERSITY OF STUTTGART (FIGURE 11), A SPECIFIC CHARACTER OF SAND DOLLAR SEA URCHINS WAS ADOPTED IN WHICH AT LEAST THREE PLYWOOD SHEETS ONLY 6MM THICK WOULD FORM REPETITIVE JUNCTIONS, ENABLING THE TRANS-MISSION OF NORMAL AND SHEAR FORCES BUT RESTRICTING BENDING MOVEMENT IN THE JOIN IT-SELF. THE KEY OPPORTUNITY HERE IS THAT THE METHOD CAN BE APPLIED TO A NUMBER OF 1 David Pearson, New Organic Architecture: The Breaking Wave, First edn (California: University of California Press, 2001), p. 10.

ONE CONCEPTUAL DESIGN IMPLICATION OF THIS IS THAT INCORRECT OR INAPPLICABLE RULES FROM NATURE ARE UTILIZED FOR DESIGNS WHICH MAY NOT NEED THEM. BEYOND CONCEPTIONS OF BEAUTY WHICH ARE SUBJECTIVE REGARDLESS, BIOMIMICRY MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE THE BEST COURSE OF ACTION FOR STRUCTURAL RESOLUTIONS. THERE IS ALSO A MORAL CONSIDERATION IN THE APPLICATION OF BIOMIMETIC FORMS. IN ELE-VATING NATURE AS THE ULTIMATE SOURCE FOR CONCEPTUAL INSPIRATION, BIOMIMICRY CAN BE SEEN TO DISTANCE HUMANITY AND NATURE BY DEFINING THE TWO TERMS AS BINARIES. AN INTERPRETATION FOLLOWS THAT NATURE IS INDEPENDENT OF HUMANITY AND IS THEREFORE STILL PERCEIVED IN THE TRADITIONAL SENSE AS HAVING NO IN-HERENT VALUE; ONLY INSTRUMENTAL VALUE. IT IS THEREFORE QUESTIONABLE AS TO WHETHER A DESIGN APPROACH WHICH ADVOCATES NATURE AS SUPERIOR WHILST POS-SIBLY SUBJUGATING IT FURTHER SHOULD BE USED. HOWEVER, SINCE THE FINAL DESIGNS FUSE BIOLOGICAL GUIDELINES WITH MANMADE STRUCTURES, SUCH A MORAL OBJECTION IS OUTWEIGHED BY THE PHYSICAL COLLABORATIVE RESULT.

BIOMIMETIC ARCHITECTURE IS NOT NECESSARILY LINKED TO ANY SPECIFIC MATERIALITY, HOWEVER THERE IS A LARGE DISPOSITION TOWARDS UNIFORMITY OF MATERIAL AND NEW TECHNOLOGY. GENERALLY INVOLVING COMPLEX FORMS, FABRICATION IS CURRENTLY AN INHIBITING FACTOR IN SOME WAYS, HOWEVER WITH THE PROGRESSIVE DEVELOPMENT OF MATERIALS LIKE GRAPHENE, THIS IS UNLIKELY TO POSE LONG-TERM ISSUES.

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Figure 11: Ashley Nelson, ICD + ITKE RESEARCH PAVILION, 2011, rendering, http://www.knstrct.com/art-blog/2011/12/20/icd-itke-research-pavilion-2011 [accessed 10 April 2015].


Figure 12: James Medcraft, United Visual Artists, maple leaf square Canopy, 2010, http://www.archdaily.com/81576/ma-ple-leaf-square-canopy-united-visual-artists/uva_canopy__4/ [accessed 10 April 2015].

Figure 12: James Medcraft, United Visual Artists, maple leaf square Canopy, 2010, http://www.archdaily.com/81576/maple-leaf-square-canopy-united-visu-al-artists/uva_canopy__4/ [accessed 10 April 2015].

B2_ CASE STUDY 1.0

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MY EXPLORATION OUTCOMES WERE EXTREMELY VARIED. AS I MANIPULATED THE DEFINITION OF SKYLAR TIBBITS' 'VOLTADOM' (FIGURE 13), I BEGAN TO STRAY FURTHER AND FURTHER FROM THE ORIGINAL DESIGN INTENT UNTIL I BEGAN WORKING WITH FORMS I BOTH LIKED AND WAS FAMILIAR WITH. THE ORIGINAL DEFINITION INVOLVED THE MANIPULATION OF SURFACE EL-EMENTS TO CREATE A LARGE PLASTIC LIKE PATTERN. I HOWEVER BEGAN SINGLING IN ON INDIVIDUAL ELEMENTS AND MANIPULATING THEM DIRECTLY TO ACHIEVE DIFFERENT OUTCOMES. I BEGAN MY ALTERATIONS BY SEEKING OUT VISUALLY APPEALING OPTIONS AND FROM THERE MOVED TOWARDS ITERATIONS THROUGH EXPERIMENTATION WITH FUNCTIONS I HAD NOT EX-

PLORED BEFORE. MY FINAL OUTCOMES ARE BY NO MEANS RESOLVED, AND I AM YET TO PROPERLY APPLY MY EXPLORATIONS TO THE SITE AND BRIEF.

VoltaDom by Skylar TibbitsLocation: MIT

Project Year: 2011Figure 13: SJET, voltaDom: MIT, 2011, http://sjet.us/MIT_VOLTADOM.html [accessed 12 April 2015].

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B2_ MATRIX OF ITERATIONS

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B2_ SELECTION CRITERIA

'create architectural intervention that will express, support, amplify or question continuous relationships between technical, cultural and natural systems'

' locations as complex, interconnected and dynamic ecologies'

' encourage innovative forms of participation'

' Design, test and build innovative, surprising and beautiful three-dimensional form'

THIS KEY REQUIREMENT OF THE BRIEF DEMANDS ENGAGEMENT WITH THE VARIOUS SYSTEMS AT MERRI CREEK. THROUGH ITS INTERCONNECTD PIPE FORM, I BELIEVE THE OUTCOME AT LEFT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO REPRESENT THE COHESION OF MULTIPLE USERS AND FUNCTIONS OF THE SPACE AT MERRI CREEK. FURTHERMORE, THE FORM ALSO OFFER A BASE ON WHICH TO EXPAND BIOMETRIC AVENUES OF DESIGN.

THE OUTCOME AT RIGHT FLOWS IN A SIMI-LAR VEIN , HOWEVER THE KEY OPPORTUNITY TO STRESS HERE IS THE DYNAMISM OF THIS FORM, AND THE VARYING DEGREES / POINTS OF CONCENTRATION BOTH IN THE DESIGN AND AT THE MERRI CREEK SITE. THIS TO ME IS IM-PORTANT AS IT WILL HIGHLIGHT THE IMPOR-TANCE OF SITE LOCATION, PEOPLE MOVEMENT AND FUTURE USE.

ALTHOUGH VISUALLY REPETITIVE, I INCLUDED THIS OUTCOME BECAUSE OF BOTH ITS SURFACE PATTERN AND ITS PLATEAUED INCLINE.THIS INCLINE IS BASED OFF THE VARIOUS HILLS AND GULLIES AT THE MERRI CREEK SITE, AND THOUGHTS ON HOW TO NAVIAGTE THROUGH THIS TOPOGRAPHY WITHOUT SIMPLY FOL-LOWING THE EXISTING PATHS. THE CROSSHATCHED FINISH IS ALSO SOMETHING I WISH TO EXPLORE WITH REFERENCE TO BIOMIMICRY.

MY FINAL INCLUSION REVOLVES AROUND A LARGELY GIVEN REQUIREMENT OF THE BRIEF; TO CONCEIVE BEAUTIFUL DESIGNS. THIS IS THE KIND OF FORM THAT I AM ATTREACTED TO IN MY WORK. THIS DESIGN IS LARGELY INSPIRED BY BIOMETRIC DESIGN ON A CELLULAR LEVEL. I AM UNSURE AS TO WHETHER I WANT TO PUR-SUE THIS AVENUE; BUT I INCLUDED IT TO GIVE AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE FORMS I WISH TO EXPLORE FURTHER.

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B3_ CASE STUDY 2.0

Maple Leaf Square Canopy by United Visual ArtistsLocation: TorontoProject Year: 2010

WITH 'MAPLE LEAF SQUARE CANOPY,' (FIGURE 14) UNITED VISUAL ARTISTS HAVE ATTEMPTED TO SIMULATE THE EXPERIENCE OF WALKING THROUGH A FOREST CANOPY IN TORONTO'S INNER PRECINCT. WITH NO JUSTIFICATION NEEDED FOR THE USE OF MAPLE LEAF GEOMETRY, THE PROJECT RELAYS THE DAPPLED SUNLIGHT AS IT SIFTS THROUGH CONIFER LEAVES.

"DURING THE DAY, APERTURES IN THE MODULES FILTER NATURAL LIGHT TO THE STREET BELOW. AF-TER DUSK, PARTICLES OF ARTIFICIAL LIGHT ARE BORN, NAVIGATE THROUGH THE GRID AND DIE, THEIR SURVIVAL DETERMINED BY REGIONS OF ENERGY SWEEPING ACROSS THE STRUCTURE."1

I BELIEVE THAT THE CANOPY HAS ACHIEVED WHAT IT SET OUT TO DO, HOWEVER I WOULD QUESTION AS TO WHETHER THE LINKS DRAWN TO BIOMIMICRY ARE ONLY SHALLOW ONES. THE DESIGN IS AN-THROPOLOGICAL AND EXPERIENCED BASED, AND CENTRES ON VISUAL LOOKS. IT THEREFORE ONLY ADHERES TO CONCEPTIONS OF NATURAL BEAUTY, AND FUNCTIONAL OR STRUCTURAL LESSONS LEARNT FROM NATURE ARE FEW AND FAR BETWEEN. I WISH TO BE MORE THOROUGH IN MY APPROACH TO BIOMIMICRY, AND NOT SIMPLY DABBLE WITH ITS AESTHETIC APPEAL.

1 Nico Saieh , Maple Leaf Square Canopy / United Visual Artists (2010) <http://www.archdaily.com/81576/maple-leaf-square-canopy-united-visual-artists/> [accessed 27 Apr 2015]

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Figure 14: James Medcraft, United Visual Artists, maple leaf square Canopy, 2010, http://www.archdaily.com/81576/maple-leaf-square-canopy-united-visual-artists/uva_canopy__4/ [accessed 10 April 2015].

B3_ Reverse Engineering_CASE STUDY 2.0

STEP 1_OUTLINE A RECTANGU-LAR FORM AND PLOT POINTS, ENSURE PROX-IMITY IS SET ACCORD-INGLY.

STEP 2_CREATE VORONOI SUR-FACE FROM POINTS, BOUNDARY SET TO ENCLOSE.

STEP 3_OFFSET VORONOI, EX-TRUDE NEW SURFACE, AND CAP.

STEP 4_CONNECT POLYPOINT TO VORONOI

AND THEN EXTRUDE TO POINT ON Z PLANE, USING VORONOI AS

BASEPLANE.

STEP 5_

GROUP THE EXTRUDED CURVE OFFSET AND THE EX-

TRUDED POLYPOINT PRISM TOGETHER TO FORM DIVIDERS BETWEEN EXTRUDED CELLS.

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B3_ Reverse Engineering_CASE STUDY 2.0

STEP 6_APPLY DIFFERENT COLOUR SWATCHES TO DIFFERENT FORMS IN THE DESIGN, IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE DESIRED EFFECT.

THE OUTCOME OF MY REVERSE ENGINEERING PROJECT IS STILL RELATIVELY SIMPLE. I HAVE INCLUDED THE VORONOI SURFACE AND ITS DIVIDING ELEMENT, AS WELL AS THE EXTRUDING PRISMS WHICH ALLOW THE LIGHT TO DIFFUSE IN A NATURAL WAY. THERE IS HOWEVER THE LIGHTING ELEMENT OF WHICH I HAVE NOT ADDRESSED THOROUGHLY. NOT ALL CELLS IN THE CANOPY ARE LIT, AND THE LIGHTING OF THE CELLS CHANGES UNDER NIGHT TIME CONDITIONS. THIS WAS DIFFICULT TO CAPTURE, AND I WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE IT FURTHER. I WILL ATTEMPT TO APPLY THIS DEFINITION ON DIFFERENT SURFACES IN THE FUTURE, WHICH WILL LIKELY CONTRIBUTE TO MY FINAL DESIGN.

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DESIGN PROCESS

B4_ CASE STUDY 2.0_Matrix Development

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B4_ TECHNIQUE_DEVELOPMENT

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'create architectural intervention that will express, support, amplify or question continuous relationships between technical, cultural and natural systems'

' locations as complex, interconnected and dynamic ecologies'

' encourage innovative forms of participation'

THIS UNDULATING DESIGN WAS CONCEIVED IN RELATION TO

THE CONNECTION BETWEEN ELEMENTS: LIKE THE MERRI CREEK RIVER, THE SUR-

ROUNDING TOPOGRAPHY AND THE EXPERIENCE OF THE INDIVIDUAL. THE FORM INCLUDES VARYING

SPACES INTO WHICH I WOULD LIKE TO FIT A GROTTO, A SELCTION OF TUNNELS AND AN OVERALL RECURSIVE

EXPERIENCE.

THE FORM BELOW IS ONE OPTION FOR THIS GROTTO , WHEREBY USERS WOULD TRANSVERSE A SERIES OF TUNNELS AND STUMBLE ACCROSS AN

OPEN AREA BEFORE EXITING BACK ONTO THE RIVER PATH. THIS SECOND UNDULATING DESIGN RESPONDS TO THE HILLY

SITE AND RIVER, AND RELIES UPON THE USE OF LIGHT FILTERING LIKE THAN IN CASE

STUDY 2.0.THIS FORM OFFERS MANY DIFFER-ENT OPTIONS IN RELATION TO SHAPE, MATERIALITY

AND SURFACE ORNAMENT. THE DEISGN WILL INCLUDE SEATING, VARIOUS LIGHTING STYLES AND VIEWS TO PAST AREAS TRAVELLED. BIOMIMICRY WILL FORM THE BASIS FOR

BOTH MATERIALITY AND PATTERN, WITH PLYWOOD SECTIONS USED FOR VORONOI EXPRESSION AS AN EXAMPLE. .

B5_ TECHNIQUE_PROTOTYPES

39 40THE END OF EACH STEEL MEMBER IS BOLTED TO EXTERNAL COLUMNS WHICH SUPPORT THE STRUC-TURE. THE STEEL MEMBERS ASSUME THEIR INTENDED POSITION TO ALIGN WITH THE BEDROCK EXCA-VATION AND NATURAL SURFACE SURROUNDING. THEY PATH OF THE DISSENT INTO THE OPENED AREA IS REACHED THROUGH THE TOPOGRAPHY OF THE SITE AND THE ACCESSIBILITY OF CERTAIN ELE-MENTS. THE STRUCTURE WILL BE LIGHTWEIGHT AND THE SUPPORTING ELEMENTS WILL BE FASTENED AT EACH END TO THE BEDROCK. AT THIS STAGE THE DESIGN WILL BE SEMI RECESSED INTO THE ROCK RACE, SO WEATHER CONCERNS ARE NOT A PRIMARY CONCERN. FLOODS HOWEVER ARE. WITH CLOSE PROXIMITY TO DIGHTS FALLS, ENTRANCES AND OPENINGS MUST BE RAISED ABOVE A SAFE FLOOD LINE. AT THIS STAGE OF THE PROTOTYPE I AM OPTING FOR PLYWOOD FINISHES ON VORONOI SURFAC-ES AND EXPOSED STEEL FOR STRUCTURE BEHIND.

THE ELEMENTS THAT COMPRISE MY DESIGN ARE MADE UP OF STEEL, WOOD AND GLASS. THE OVER-ARCHING MEMBERS ARE MADE OF STEEL, AND SMALLER SECTIONS OF STEEL ARE WELDED ONTO THEM WHICH SUSPEND THE VORONOI WOOD CLADDING.

ASSEMBLY DIAGRAM


Transarquitetônica by Henrique OliveiraLocation: Museu de Arte Contemporânea da Universidade, São Paulo

Project Year: 2014

TRANSARQUITETÔNICA BY HENRIQUE OL-IVEIRA (FIGURE 15) OFFERS INSPIRATION FOR MY CLADDING TECHNIQUE. THERE AS A SLIGHT RUSTICATION THAT I WANT TO ACHIEVE WHICH IS SHOWCASED IN TRANSARQUITETÔNICA. ITS USE OF RECYCLED PLYWOOD AND WIRE FRAME ARE THINGS WHICH I WOULD LIKE TO EMULATE IN SOME SENSE.

THE TWISTING TUNNEL FORMS UTILIZE BIOMIM-ICRY TO EVOKE A CERTAIN FEELING. IT IS IN THIS SENSE THAT I HOPE TO UTILIZE BIOMIMIC-RY; NOT SIMPLY WITH REFERNCE TO AESTHET-ICS, BUT WITH A FUNCTIONAL RESOLUTION RE-LATED TO THE MEANING OF THE BUILDING. FOR INSTANCE, OLIVEIRA MAKES USE OF THE PLY-WOOD IN THE SHAPE OF A TREE TO COMMENT ON THE SOCIOECONOMIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC DIVIDE IN FAVELA AREAS OF SOUTH AMERICA.

I WILL UTILIZE BIOMIMICRY IN A SIMILAR SENSE, THIS IS WHY I HAVE OPTED TO BUILD A TUN-NEL; THE MOST COHESIVE COMMUNITY BASED GROUPS IN NATURE ARE ANTS. BY DESIGNING A SECTION OF TUNNEL I WANT TO CONVEY THIS SENSE OF COMMUNITY FOUND IN NATURE.

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Figure 15: Henrique Oliveira, Transarquitetônica, 2015, http://indulgd.com/wooden-tunnels-installation/ [accessed 25 April 2015].


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UNDER DESIGN CONDITIONS LIKE STRETCHING AND TORSION, THIS MODEL OF THE VORONOI CELLS REACTED WELL. IT WAS HIGHLY FLEXIBLE, HOWEVER IT AS-SUMED ITS ORIGINAL POSITION EACH TIME AN APPLIED FORCE WAS RELEASED. THE LIGHTWEIGHT STRUCTURE WAS UNABLE TO BEAR HEAVY LOADS OF ITS OWN ACCORD, AND SO I IMPLEMENTED STEEL BEAMS TO SUPPORT THE FRAME IN THE FORM OF COAT HANGER WIRE. LIGHT WORKS IN DIFFERENT WAYS DEPENDING ON THE ORIENTATION OF THE CELLS, WHICH IS ALSO DEPENDENT UPON THE MATERIAL USED

DESIGN CONDITIONS DID NOT BODE SO WELL FOR MY PATTERNING PROTOTYPE, AS ANY AMOUNT OF DISTORTION WOULD DISRUPT THE MAGNETS AND CAUSE THE MODEL TO COLLAPSE IN ONE AREA OR ANOTHER. THIS PROTOTYPE DID HOWEV-ER ALLOW ME TO EXPLORE MATERIALI-TY. I WILL CONSIDER THIS ASPECT FUR-THER IN PART C.

IN REGARDS TO MY PATTERNING PRO-TOTYPE MODEL, IT DEMONSTRATED TO ME THAT CELLS THAT ARE SMALL-ER ARE STRONGER, AND THAT WITH SMALL STRONGER CELLS THE SURFACE CAN ACHIEVE GREAT EFFECT WITHOUT COVERING THE ENTIRE FORM.

THE PROCESS OF FABRICATING THESE PROTOTYPE MODELS ALLOWED ME TO UN-DERSTAND THE CONSTRUCTION SEQUENCE AND ITS IMPORTANCE IN THE OVERALL DE-SIGN. AFTER EXPERIMENTING WITH VORONOI CELL STRUCTURES ARRANGED IN A SEMI EN-CLOSED “ SEMI OPEN FORM, IT BECAME CLEAR THAT WITHOUT ADEQUATE REINFORCEMENT AND ANCHOR POINTS THEY WOULD NOT HOLD UP. THIS LED ME TO INCLUDE STEEL BEAMS AS SUPPORTS WHERE I OTHERWISE MAY NOT HAVE HAD THEM.

B6_ TECHNIQUE_PROPOSAL

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MY DESIGN PROPOSAL REVOLVES AROUND THE IDEA OF EXPE-RIENCE, COMMUNITY AND WONDER. I HAVE UTILIZED BIOMIMICRY TO SOLVE THE FUNCTIONAL AND SYMBOLIC PROBLEM OF COHESIVENESS BETWEEN MUTLIPLE SYSTEMS AS PER THE BRIEF, I HAVE ALSO ATTEMPTED TO ENGAGE WITH THE UNDULATING TOPOGR-PHY OF THE SITE AT MERRI CREEK; SPECIFICALLY DIGHTS FALLS WHICH HAS BEEN A HUB FOR COMMUNITY OVER HUN-DERDS OF YEARS.

THE EXOSKELETEN

ABOVE DEMONSTRATES BOTH THE FORM OF THIS PRO-

POSAL AND ITS LOAD BEARING ELEMENTS. USERS ARE INTENDED TO MAKE THEIR WAY FREELY

THROUGH A TUNNEL AREA WHICH BEGINS AT THE TOP OF THE RIDGE ABOVE DIGHTS FALLS, AND EMERGE INTO A SEMI-RE-

CESSED GROTTO EMBEDDED INTO THE ROCK. THE CEILING FOR THIS SPACE WILL BE LITTERS WITH VORONOI CELLS WHICH DIFFUSE

LIGHT INTO THE TUNNEL AND GROTTO.

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MY TECHNIQUE IS FAR FROM SET IN STONE; PUN INTENDED. I BELIEVE THE CURRENT LO-CATION AT DIGHTS FALLS IS WHAT I WISH TO DESIGN MY FORM AROUND, HOWEVER THE FORM WILL ALMOST CERTAINLY CHANGE. I BELIEVE MY DESIGN IS INNOVATIVE BECAUSE IT PUSHES THE BOUNDS OF BIOMIMICRY IN APPLICATION, AND IT HANDLES THE BRIEF ON A SUBCONSCIOUS AND DEEP LEVEL. I BELIEVE THAT MY DESIGN IS ALSO A SURPRIS-ING ONE IN THAT IT WILL BE PAR-TIALLY UNDERGROUND..

THE DRAWBACK OF MY PROPOS-AL ARE FIRSTLY THAT I HAVE MANY THINGS TO CLARIFY; ONE BEING THE DESIGN ITSELF. I THINK THAT NOW WITH A STRONG GROUNDING IN MY THEORETICAL APPROACH THAT I CAN TAKE THIS FORM INTO PART C WITH CONFIDENCE THAT I CAN EXPAND AND BUILD UPON IT.

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B7_ LEARNING OBJECTIVES_OUTCOMES

MY RESEARCH INTO THE COMPUTATIONAL FIELD HAS SHED SOME LIGHT ON THE ISSUES DIS-CUSSED IN CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURAL DISCOURSE. I FEEL THAT THERE IS NO VALID GROUND FOR CLAIMING THAT COMPUTATIONAL ARCHITECTURE HAS NO ROLE TO PLAY IN THE DESIGN PRO-CESS; IT IS MERELY AN ITERATION TOOL. DIGITAL ARCHITECTURE IS LIKE ANY OTHER FORM, IN THAT BRIEFS MUST BE MET TO ONE DEGREE OR ANOTHER AND THAT MULTIPLE CLICKS OF A BUTTON ARE NO DIFFERENT TO MULTIPLE STROKES OF A PENCIL.

MY INTERROGATION OF THE BRIEF WAS INFORMED YET SIMPLE. I PICKED OUT FOUR TO FIVE KEY RE-QUIREMENTS WHICH I FELT ENCAPSULATED THE ENTIRE COMMISSION, AND STARTED TO THINK HOW THOSE REQUIREMENTS COULD CONNECT AND INTERRELATE TO FORM A DESIGN. ONCE MY CRITERIA DESIGN WAS ESTABLISHED, THE LIMITLESS OPTIONS OFFERS BY COMPUTATIONAL PROCESS QUICK-LY SHRUNK.

MY ABILITY TO GENERATE A VARIETY OF DESIGN POSSIBILITIES HINGED ON MY INTERROGATION OF THE BRIEF, AS WITHOUT THIS FOOTING; FORMS ARE NOT DESIGN POSSIBILITIES BUT RATHER ACCI-DENTS OF COMPUTATIONAL PROCESS. I DEFINITELY HAD SOME ACCIDENTS ALONG THE WAY HOWEV-ER.

I AM YET TO REACH MY FULL POTENTIAL WITH GRASSHOPPER. I FEEL THAT I NEED TO KEEP ON EXPANDING MY COMPUTATIONAL TECHNIQUES, NOT JUST THE FORMS WHICH I APPLY THEM TO. I AM HOWEVER LEARNING MORE ABOUT OTHER THREE-DIMENSIONAL MEDIA SUCH AS MAGNETS AND PRO-GRESSIVE MODEL MAKING.

I BELIEVE I HAVE MADE GREAT HEADWAY WITH MY DESIGN PROPOSAL, SPECIFICALLY THE JUSTI-FICATION FOR DESIGNING A TUNNEL AND GROTTO IN AND WHERE I PLAN TO BUILD THEM. MY ARGU-MENTS DO NEED WORK HOWEVER; THEY ARE PROBABLY NOT RIGOROUS AND PERSUASIVE ENOUGH YET.

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B8_ APPENDIX_ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

REFERENCES

Pearson, David. New Organic Architecture: The Breaking Wave, First edn (California: University of California Press, 2001), p. 10.

Saieh, Nico. Maple Leaf Square Canopy / United Visual Artists (2010) <http://www.archdaily.com/81576/maple-leaf-square-canopy-united-visual-artists/> [accessed 27 Apr 2015]



Figure 13: SJET, voltaDom: MIT, 2011, http://sjet.us/MIT_VOLTADOM.html [accessed 12 April 2015].


Figure 15: Henrique Oliveira, Transarquitetônica, 2015, http://indulgd.com/wooden-tunnels-installation/ [accessed 25 April 2015].

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PART C_ DETAILED DESIGN

stones jordan 640811 part b

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