the digital age new forms in contemporary …thomasfutcher.co.uk/thomas futcher digital...

THE DIGITAL AGE: NEW FORMS IN

CONTEMPORARY ARCHITECTURE

Author:

Thomas Futcher

Academic Year:

2009-2010

Word Count:

5563

Architecture Department

The Faculty of Humanities

University of Kent, United Kingdom

Futcher, T. 2009-2010

TABLE OF CONTENTS

KEYWORDS AND ABSTRACT ........................................................................................ i

QUOTATION .......................................................................................................... ii

INTRODUCTION ....................................................................................................... 1

DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN ................................................................. 1

APPLICATION OF CATIA SOFTWARE IN ARCHITECTURE ....................................................... 4

BLOBITECTURE ....................................................................................................... 5

SELFRIDGES DEPARTMENT STORE ................................................................................. 7

‘BLOB’ PRECEDENTS ................................................................................................ 8

PERFORMANCE ARCHITECTURE ................................................................................. 10

MASTER BUILDERS ................................................................................................. 13

FOSTER AND PARTNERS ........................................................................................... 14

REDISCOVERY OF ORNAMENT ................................................................................... 17

PARAMETRIC ARCHITECTURE .................................................................................... 18

CONCLUSION ....................................................................................................... 20

FIGURE REFERENCES............................................................................................... 22

BIBLIOGRAPHY ...................................................................................................... 24

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ABSTRACT

The key question arising in this paper is how technological advances in computer-aided

design have affected throughout the years the forms created in architectural design of the

avant-garde. Most significant of these changes is the development of NURB-surfaces.

Through the analysis of the iconic Blobitecture movement the new forms are described and

attributed to technological advances as well as precedents of previous architects such as

Antonio Gaudi. The computers structural and qualitative analysis has been key to the

development of performance architecture, which brings a new meaning and function to these

free forms. Comparing works of Foster and Partners show these changes clearly and

chronologically. The final section of the investigation addresses parametrism, where Zaha

Hadid is leading the way in a unifying twenty-first century design movement.

KEYWORDS

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‘The architecture of modern times is

characterised by its capacity to take advantage

of the specific achievements of that same

modernity; the innovations offered it by present

day science and technology…’

Solà-Morales, I. (1997) Differences: Topographies of Contemporary

Architecture.

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THE DIGITAL AGE: NEW FORMS IN CONTEMPORARY

ARCHITECTURE THOMAS FUTCHER

he digital age appears to be creating a very different architectural discourse amongst

the twenty-first century avant-garde; creating iconic public forms and redefining the

architect’s role in building production. This dissertation addresses how new

developments in computer-aided design technologies are changing the way buildings are

conceived, designed and produced to give new forms in contemporary architecture.

DEVELOPMENT OF COMPUTER-AIDED DESIGN

Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computers to assist the design of real or virtual

objects1. The Oxford Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture describes the

advantages of such a tool:

From the 1970s computers have been used in design as representations of complicated three-

dimensional forms and can be easily stored or manipulated. Images can be printed, architectural

projections can be produced and interiors can be explored in virtual reality. Details can be stored

for reuse, avoiding the drudgery of repetitive hand-made drawings. To a certain extent the design

process has been changed, but CAD may not be appropriate for all eventualities.2

Orthographic CAD tools made a commercial breakthrough within architectural design

practices in the early 1980s3 with the release of AutoCAD Version 1.0 in December of 1982;4

a vector based program that enabled traditional orthographic drafting techniques to be

completed using a desktop computer. It quickly became an accepted tool for all design

professions, particularly automotive and nautical engineering, as it allowed for greater

efficiency in drawing as explained by The Oxford Dictionary of Architecture extract. These

early stages in development of CAD software show little effect on building forms as it simply

provided a more efficient replacement of skills already possible through hand drafting. With

sustained innovation in computer hardware and software, CAD systems developed increased

1 Oxford Reference Online, Philips World Encyclopaedia

2 Oxford Reference Online, Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture

3 Schmitt, G. Information Architecture. Page 7

4 Hamad, M. AutoCAD 2010 Essentials. Preface: Introduction

T

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functionality and graphic capability. As these computer systems became more powerful and

economical, software could also become more sophisticated. The advent of B-spline curves

and NURBS-surfaces (parametric curves and surfaces) gave greater freedom in the use of

computers as a design tool, releasing designers from the restrictions of a linear system and

opening a world of complex free, curved forms and surfaces modelled on screen in three-

dimensions. It allows for mathematically precise representations and analysis of free form

surfaces, transformed using a number of variable control points. Prior representations of these

surface types were only possible using physical models, which can be challenging to

comprehend and difficult to convert into precise information for manufacturers.

Antonio Gaudi’s (1852-1926) works in Barcelona are well-known examples of managing

non-rectangular architectural forms with intricate models opposed to new CAD software. At

the Sagrada Familia (Figure 1) Gaudi replaced buttresses with slanted columns that would

take the lateral loads created by his parabolic vaults to the ground. He tested this system with

hanging models of weighted wires (Figure 2). The result was a structural design, that when

inverted would act in pure compression. Due to its scale and complexity, the project is still in

construction and not expected to be completed until at least 2026.5

5 Olsen, B. Sacred Places Europe. Page 296

Figure 1: Sagrada Familia, Antonio Gaudi, 1883-. Figure 2: Gaudi hanging model.

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Following from the sustained development and refinement of CAD systems, digital

technologies are now in the foreground of architectural design. The effect of advances in

technology on architectural forms and systems has been seen throughout architectural history,

attributed by Spanish architect and philosopher Ignasi de Solà-Morales (1942-2001) to the

desire for innovation:

The architecture of modern times is characterised by its capacity to take advantage of the specific

achievements of that same modernity; the innovations offered it by present day science and

technology...6

The scale of technological advances made in the new ‘Information Age’ has been experienced

before. During the nineteenth century a ubiquitous Metropolis skyline of glistening

skyscrapers manifested from the new tools for mass production of glass and steel; established

by the Industrial Revolution. Joseph Paxton’s (1803-1865) Crystal Palace and Gustave

Eiffel’s (1832-1923) Tower in Paris embody the zeitgeist of this industrial architecture. The

images in Figures 3 and 4 show their bold use of steel frames, made possible through the

mechanisation in manufacture of building components. In a similar way the digital age is

challenging the way buildings are designed, manufactured and constructed.

6 Solà-Morales, I. Differences: Topographies of Contemporary Architecture. Page 117

Figure 3: Joseph Paxton's Crystal Palace, 1851. Figure 4: Gustave Eiffel's Tower in Paris, 1889.

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APPLICATION OF CATIA SOFTWARE IN ARCHITECTURE

Greg Lynn (b.1964) distinguished himself by pioneering the use of CATIA (Computer Aided

Three-dimensional Interactive Application) software, which utilised the advent of NURBS-

surfaces, adapting it from nautical engineering to the field of architecture. His publication

titled ‘Animate Form’ introduces architectural concepts that break away from inert volumes

with new dynamic expressions of movement, as in his Port Authority Gateway competition

entry. Simulations of the movement and flow of cars, buses and pedestrians were used as the

force behind the shape of surfaces and planes. Greg Lynn tells that ‘If it comes down to it... I

would give the software 51% of the credit for the design of my buildings.’7 In some respects

this may be seen to diminish the role of the architect, in favour of intelligent computer

systems. His prototype Embryological House (Figure 5) explores the use of animation

software to create infinite mutated designs that could be used to revolutionise mass-produced

suburban housing. These virtual realities show not only the aesthetics but also the feel and

sound within a design.

Architect Frank Gehry (b.1929) is also famously attributed to the innovative use of CATIA

software. Much of his work falls into the style of Deconstructivism, going beyond structural

definition. The Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao (Figure 6 and 7) opened to the public in 1997

and optimises the curvilinear forms possible with CATIA software. Made up of

interconnected titanium curved shapes, it was deemed ‘the greatest building of our age...’ by

architect Philip Johnson (1906-2005).8

7 Waters, J. Blobitecture. Page 53

8 Guasch, A., Zulaika, J. Learning from the Bilbao Guggenheim. Page 195

Figure 5: Embryological Houses, Greg Lynn, 1999

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The boat-like form of Gehry's Guggenheim Museum suggests a relationship to the program’s

initial roots; a link has been created with the structural techniques of the ship building

industry. However, the concept itself did not solely derive from CATIA software. Gehry

openly describes how he first creates a physical model, which is digitally scanned to make a

three-dimensional graphical representation. Computer-aided design has not completely

replaced past techniques. Despite its critical acclimation, Gehry’s work has its detractors; the

building can be interpreted as a waste of structural resources, creating functionless forms with

a lack of sympathy to climate or surroundings. We are experiencing a demise in the

modernist theory that form should follow function. Even with this criticism it has been an

unprecedented success, showing how buildings ascribed to the new digital movement can

boost the economy of an area. In 2008, it brought the city of Bilbao €320 million through the

custom generated by tourists visiting the museum.9

BLOBITECTURE

‘Blobitecture’ has become the most iconic result of the developments in three-dimensional

digital technology within the public domain. The term, first coined by Greg Lynn in 1995,

describes organic, amoeba-shaped, fluid form buildings designed using digital modelling

software such as CATIA or Autodesk 3D Studio Max. 10 Architects can derive the forms by

manipulating the algorithms of the computer modelling software. The Oxford Dictionary of

Architecture defines the Blobitecture design movement as:

9 Williams, H. Frank Gehry: ‘Don’t call me a starchitect’. The Independent 17 Dec 2009

10 Waters, J. Blobitecture. Page 8

Figure 6: Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, Frank Gehry. Figure 7: Guggenheim Museum aerial photograph.

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A late twentieth century early twenty-first century fashion of anti-urban, anti-contextual buildings

resembling large blobs with reptile-like carapaces: they may have scales, but sometimes lack

scale.11

The first ‘blob’ building of this movement was the Water Pavilion (1993-1997), built by Lars

Spuybroek (b.1959) in the Netherlands as a postmodernist rebellion against the observed

monotony of modernism.12 The fully computer based sculptural geometry is in perpetual

disparity and flux (Figure 8), constructed using computer-aided tools. The interior has sensors

that respond to light and sound to produce visual projections. As in Lynn’s introduction of

animation, the Blobitecture movement is producing dynamic and interactive architecture.

Figure 9 shows the bus station at Spaarne Hospital, also in the Netherlands, designed by NIO

Architecten in 2003. There are no horizontal or vertical surfaces within the homogeneous,

fluid, curvaceous form creating a sheltered negative space for pedestrians to wait beneath.

This type of free arched form and shape was uncommon in the surrounding orthogonal

western architecture of boxes and rectilinear planes. Computer modelling is not used just as a

new tool for visual representation, but a tool to generate and transform forms through digital

morphogenesis. It provides unlimited ability to stretch, fold and distort three-dimensional

forms in a virtual space. A dynamic process with the computer playing a collaborative role

with the architect. The figures also show how the boundary between interior and exterior

space has been blurred. CAD has enabled this by using 3D modelling to show the building in

its surrounding context, making relationships between interior and exterior clearer than older

methods used during the design stages. These early ‘hypersurface’ forms, coined by Stephen

Perrella (1956-2008), are often dismissed as a ‘fad’ or novelty due to the lack of reason or

integrity13, resulting literally from the instruments of the new software.

11

Oxford Reference Online. Dictionary of Architecture and Landscape Architecture 12

Borden, D. Essential Architecture: The History of Western Architecture. Page 501 13

Kolarevic, B. Architecture in the Digital Age. Page 6

Figure 8: Water Pavilion, Lars Spuybroek, 1993-97 Figure 9: Spaarne Hospital bus station, NIO Architecten, 2003. Co

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SELFRIDGES DEPARTMENT STORE

Once firms became more familiar and proficient with the new computer software, designs

were able to move away from this purely ‘blobby’ aesthetic to much more complex and

iconic examples, such as Selfridges Department Store in Birmingham (Figure 10 and 11)

designed by Future Systems architects in 1999 and completed in 2003.14

Blobitecture forms have such an iconic status due to the formal juxtapositions created

between the 'blobs' and the traditional urban setting. As with Gehry’s Bilbao Guggenheim

Museum, this contrast to surrounding architectural styles can bring considerable economic

benefits to an area due to the attraction of tourism. In this respect these digital forms created

are justified. This desire for iconic status, higher cost of construction and questionable loss of

function has kept the Blobitecture movement predominantly in the public building sector.

Charles Jencks (b.1939) describes how ‘in the past public buildings expressed shared

meaning and conveyed it through well-known conventions’ whereas today there is a ‘need for

instant fame, it has to be an amazing piece of surreal sculpture.’15

Karim Rashid's (industrial designer b.1960) article ‘I Want to Change the World’ discusses

how biomorphic forms manifest:

Are our objects a result of new computer aided tools of morphing?... I see we are shaping a world

inspired by the highly complex dimensional tools. NURBS, splines, metaballs, and other bio-

shaping commands are fostering a more released organic condition. I can take any sacred

14

www.future-systems.com/architecture/architecture_03.html 15

Jencks, C. Iconic Building. Page Preface

Figure 10: Selfridges Department Store, Birmingham, 1999-2003. Figure 11: Selfridges Store external envelope.

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geometry... a cube, a sphere, a cylinder, and collage them together or metaball them into a liquid

plastic biomorphic form that I can regulate - softer, globular or tighter and more defined.16

Computers have given the three dimensional freedom needed to inspire aesthetic forms and

has also provided the tools to draw and calculate accurately how these will work structurally.

While the form of the building is manipulated the software automatically calculates

mathematical equations that give structural integrity to the design. Computer-aided

Manufacture (CAM) can be used in combination with CAD to make such a building possible

in reality. In the past even if such forms could be conceived on the drawing board there was

no way for them to be constructed using taditional methods because of the complexity of

such a structure. In the examples of Selfridges Department Store Birmingham and Lars

Spuybroek’s Water Pavilion the use of sheet metalwork gives a protective armour or

industrial aeathetic.

The strong juxtaposition within western urban context makes these forms seem to be

something truly new and original. Contemporary digital architecture appears to have

abandoned the discourse of style, rejecting the urban typology, surrounding vernacular,

context, and historic styles. However, this new movement of biomorphic forms is not without

precedent. Since the Baroque, architects have been breaking out from the established

aesthetics of Euclidean geometry: ‘there were those who managed to inform their works with

a similar organic aesthetic without the help of high tech tools...’17

‘BLOB’ PRECEDENTS

As seen in all of the previous architectural examples from the Blobitecture movement there is

an obvious influence from natural forms and biology. The freedoms of CAD modelling still

requires there to be a source of inspiration driving the design.

The forms of Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum can be traced to 1920s German Expressionism,

with similar curved planes seen in Hermann Finsterlin’s (1887-1973) sketches of a concept

glasshouse (Figure 12). The organic biomorphic forms are found in both Surrealism and Art

Nouveau, for example the sinuous lines of Hector Guimard’s (1867-1942) Porte Dauphine

station in Paris (Figure 13). Spanish architect Rafael Moneo (b.1937) spoke of ‘forgotten

geometries lost to us because of the difficulties of their representation’. 18 It was Le

16

Waters, J. Blobitecture. Page 53 17

Waters, J. Blobitecture. 18

Moneo, R. The Thing Called Architecture. In Davidson, C. Anything. Page 120-123

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Corbusier’s (1887-1965) concept of ‘free plan’ and ‘free façade’ enabled the emergence of

curves in modernist architecture projects.19 These precedents show that the contemporary

forms may not actually be truly unthinkable as initially perceived, nevertheless without the

CAD and CAM systems discussed such buildings could not have been realised economically.

The uses of CAD tools themselves are far from immune to architectural debate. The essay

titled ‘The Impact of The Computer on Architectural Practice’ contained in Daniel Willis’

book ‘The Emerald City’, although not a completely degrading article on the application of

digital technology, argues that ‘firms have elected to computerize, not out of the desire to

explore areas of architecture that only computers can facilitate, but merely to execute their

duties more rapidly.’20 This faster pace of drafting removes the reflective and analytical

process of drawing a line resulting in cases of a lost connection between the digital image and

the materials or methods that will be used to realise the project. Architects can now copy

conventional construction details with ease, restricting the experimentation or innovation in

this field. This investigation, although brief, shows that as with any tool CAD should be used

where most appropriate and without forgetting other skills required of an architect.

Félix Candela (1910-1997) was a Spanish architect and structural engineer who worked from

the late 1930s to the 1960s, pre-CAD. His major contribution was the development of thin

shells made out of reinforced concrete. The Valencia Oceanografic (Figure 14) is constructed

predominantly through this use of reinforced concrete. Figure 15 is an exploration by Candela 19

Kolarevic, B. Architecture in the Digital Age. Page 5 20

Willis, D. The Emerald City. Page 279

Figure 12: Hermann Finsterlin’s Glass House concept. Figure 3: Porte Dauphine station in Paris, Hector Guimard, 1900.

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revealing that these complicated concrete curves can be constructed through a network of

straight lines to form self-supporting surfaces.

The majority of Candela’s work focused on understanding the structure of hyperbolic

paraboloids, believing that strength should come from form not mass. It is no surprise his

work shows similarities to products of CAD, as he revolutionised the use of mathematics in

architecture, just as software is able to do so easily today. It seems that these free forms have

been made more common due to the computer’s ability to instantly apply structural

mathematics to a design and the desire to push material and technical possibilities. This

ideology has come to the focus in recent years, with a shift from the bio-morphology of

Blobitecture towards structural and performance-based architecture.

PERFORMANCE ARCHITECTURE

Blobitecture is not a monolithic movement amongst the digital avant-garde. Another kind of

architecture is also emerging, with building performance becoming the principle design factor

from the first stages. Performance is taken as the driving force for creating forms, utilising

digital technologies ability for quantitative and qualitative performance based simulation.21

This covers numerous factors including finance, technology, structure, light, sound and heat.

Advances in graphic visualisation mean that this quantitative data can be represented and

assessed qualitatively to allow easy comparison and presentation of design alternatives to find

the optimum performance solution. With global warming and environmental impacts

prominent in the media, the social demand for greater energy efficiency in buildings have

made this a popular application of CAD.

21


Figure 14: Valencia Oceanografic, Felix Candela. Figure 15: Candela’s structural diagram.

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Future Systems is a London based high-tech architectural and design practice pioneering this

performance architecture since their Selfridges store blob. Founded by Jan Kaplicky (1937-

2009) the company won the Stirling Prize in 1999 for Lords Cricket Ground Media Centre.

Project ZED, London (1995) investigates the possibility of zero emission developments,

forming part of a wider initiative funded by the European Commission. It is a mixed-use

building using wind and sunlight as free energy sources. Figure 16 shows the Computational

Fluid Dynamics (CFD) diagram for their Project ZED concept. The analysis was vital in

determining the building’s form as the façade needed to be curved in a way that minimised

the impact of wind on the building’s perimeter and to channel it towards the turbine at the

centre. After conducting this testing, the floor plan was changed from an egg-shape on each

side of the turbine to the boomerang shape seen in Figure 17, as it was found to reduce

turbulence.22 By using computer technology changes could be made to optimise performance

and give a greater understanding of how the building will behave within its environmental

context. Architects can test their designs before construction to ensure an efficient outcome,

with the added ability of rapid prototyping using Computer-numerically Controlled (CNC)

machines.

The Foster and Partners' Greater London Authority Headquarters (City Hall, 1998-2002) has

a similar revolutionary pebble-like aesthetic, a product of computer analysis and development

22

Hagan, S. Digitalia. Page 88

Figure 17: Project ZED, Future Systems, 1995. Figure 16: CFD analysis of wind flows.

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into a sustainable building form. Foster and Partners is an international architecture firm

based in the United Kingdom, founded in 1967 by Norman Foster. They have created a high

profile with their glass and steel buildings. City Hall resulted from the need to optimise

energy performance and was achieved by minimising the surface area exposed to direct

sunlight by 25% compared to that of a cube of identical volume.23 In turn, this reduces the

solar heat gains and losses. Figure 18 illustrates this concept. The hot spot shown in Figure 19

at the top of the building revealed to designers the perfect location for solar panels.

The main axis is oriented towards the midday sun to present a minimal surface area for solar

gain and the side elevations are curved to present a minimal area to the east and west where

the façades face a low sun angle. The external cladding of perforated aluminium also came

from the analysis of sunlight patterns throughout the year, creating solar shades that are

integrated into the form instead of being a separate component.

23


Figure 20: City Hall acoustic analysis three-dimensional model.

Figure 19: City Hall heat gain analysis model. Figure 18: City Hall, Foster + Partners sun angle diagram.

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Other significant developments in the design of Foster and Partners’ city hall were from the

use of acoustic wave simulation. ARUP's engineers (Consulting Engineers) conducted an

acoustic analysis of the debating chamber geometry and found that the design’s dramatic

shape would be ineffective acoustically because all the sound reflected straight back towards

the speaker. The solution was to wrap a spiral ramp around the flask to make the glazing lean

outward, reflecting the sound in a totally different direction (Figure 20). Final acoustic

analysis showed this alteration of form and circulation to be successful.

Through the use of structural analysis architects can also push further the boundaries of

existing materials and construction methods with confidence; resulting primarily in taller

structurally demanding architecture. These developments are also driven by the demand for

space in urban contexts. The analytical capacity of CAD gives a significant shift in how

'blobby' forms are perceived; giving them meaning rather than just a result of new freedoms

in 3D modelling suggested by the examples of work from the early Blobitecture movement.

One of the most profound aspects of modern architecture is not the rediscovery of forms, but

the new ability for mathematical analysis of construction systems.

The sinuous curvilinear forms could become not only an expression of new aesthetics, or a

particular cultural and socio-economic moment born out of the digital revolution, but also an

optimal formal expression for the new ecological consciousness that calls for sustainable

building...24

This extract from the text of Branko Kolarevic, shows how environmental performance

criteria and sustainability has become vital in today's society, computers have enabled

architects to meet these new demands by providing testing of new and innovative concepts,

and allowing integration in the earliest stages of design. There has been a significant shift of

emphasis from form to complex structure.

MASTER BUILDERS

The complexity of this new Computer-aided Architectural Design (CAAD) is forcing

architects to take a more involved role in the construction of their building. A single 3D

model can be produced containing dimensions, analysis, fabrication, construction and time

based information that can be passed to all contractors. A seamless collaborative process is

established by a digital continuum. The architect has regained the principles from medieval

24


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times of master builders overseeing the entire project from conception to completion.

Information and communication technology has enabled management of more complex

building projects more comprehensively and on a global scale.

The development of the shape and supporting structure was an iterative, collaborative process that

relied upon the rapid exchange of electronic 3D models between Arup and the architect.

Components and details were standardised by the Arup design team wherever possible. For

example, the 'cotton reel' column node is standardised throughout the building giving efficiency in

the fabrication of the structure... 25

This quotation about the design process of City Hall confirms how computer technology and

the internet helped bring together collaborations in the design process from across the globe.

Flat panel drawings can be created from 3D models to allow fabricators to immediately price,

manufacture and build on site regardless of the forms complexity. The glazing of the north

lens elevation on City Hall consists of unique panels of glass (similar to their British Museum

roof, 1994-2000) so designers heavily relied on CAD systems and their link to CNC

machines to test the geometry, making a physical model to check that the technique and

design was scalable. This exchange of information and testing is vital for a high quality

product. CAD is not only producing more complex intelligent building forms, but also

arguably ones perceived to be of a higher quality due to the continued computer testing and

refinement of new concepts before construction.

FOSTER AND PARTNERS

An extract taken from the Foster and Partners’ website tells of how CAD is now so important

in their work:

The advent of digital technologies has allowed us to design and build structures with complex

geometric forms that would not have been feasible as little as twenty years ago. The practice's

specialist modelling group has an advanced 3D computer modelling capability that allows

architects to explore design solutions rapidly and to communicate data to consultants and

contractors. While new technologies have transformed the way we work, traditional model making

still plays a crucial role and our sophisticated model shop can produce everything from sketch

models to full size mock-ups...26

Having analysed the use of digital technology on Foster and Partners’ City Hall design a

comparison can be made with their previous work to truly show how architectural form has 25

Powel, K. London Pride Structure. Architects Journal 26

www.fosterandpartners.com/Data/WayWeWork.aspx

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changed in their practice since the introduction of CAD. Norman Foster’s education and

establishment of an architectural practice came before computers CAD making it a prime

example for showing the transition from hand drafting to computer modelling.

The IBM Pilot Head Office (1970-71) and Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts (1974-78) were

two of Foster and Partners first major projects.27 The photographs of Figures 21 and 22 show

how both these projects follow orthogonal conventions of the Cartesian grid, with the clean

straight lines in both the interior layout and the external envelope as found throughout the

modernist design movement.

The first use of CAD was on Stansted Airport (Figure 23) completed in 1991; however, the

design began in the early 1980s before computers were introduced to the practice's offices so

the project still follows the principle features of the other earlier figures.28 In 1988, the

opportunity to extend the original Sainsbury Centre provided one of the first chances to use

27

Pawley, M. Norman Foster: a Global Architecture. Page 41 28

Howard, R. CAD, Curved Surfaces and Building Quality. Thesis Page 429

Figure 22: Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, 1974-78. Figure 21: IBM Pilot Head Office, 1970-71.

Figure 23: Stansted Airport, 1991. Figure 24: Sainsbury Centre Extension, 1998.

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CAD throughout the design process. Without the limitations of a drawing board, Foster and

Partners were able to accurately introduce curved profiles into their designs, shown by the

crescent wing of the Sainsbury Centre underground extension (Figure 24). This is a direct

contrast to the rectilinear structure they had designed before the beginning of the digital age.

The Swiss Re building in London (Figure 25) was designed with the aid of parametric

computer models. These models included wind, structure, shadows, solar gain, heat loss,

ventilation and exterior qualities. The form was a direct result of balancing all these

parameters to get the most efficient structure, making it one of the most striking and elegant

high-rise offices in London. It reduces wind loads to give lighter structure and comfortable

environment at the ground whilst the form of the spiralling atria inside the building creates

different air pressures to provide passive airflow internally. ‘The form of the building is

undeniably essential for its environmental performance...’ 29 There is a direct correlation

between the development in computer technology and the increasing complexity of Foster

and Partners waveform architectural aesthetic seen in the image chorology. The Sage

Gateshead (1997-2004) shown in Figure 26 epitomises these new characteristics.

29

Kolarevic, B. Performative Architecture: Beyond Instrumentality. Page 198

Figure 26: The Sage, Gateshead, 1997-2004. Figure 25: The Swiss Re building, 1997-2004.

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REDISCOVERY OF ORNAMENT

Ornament is the application of decoration and pattern to a building with no structural role. A

wide variety of characteristic decorative styles and motifs developed to meet artistic styles

and movements. Architects such as Le Corbusier and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1886-

1969) worked on the principle that ‘form follows function’ a phrase ascribed to Louis

Sullivan (1856-1924) in 1896, which was key to this emerging Modernist movement.30 In

1908 Adolf Loos (1870-1933) wrote the manifesto titled ‘Ornament and Crime’, arguing that

ornament is ‘economically inefficient’ and ‘morally degenerate’, and that ‘the lack of

ornament is a sign of an advanced society’.31 The architect was no longer compelled to create

forms based on precedents found throughout history. Today we are experiencing a revival of

ornament, through digital experimentation. It seems to be an acceptable addition to the

building’s form if it has been designed using computer software and manufactured using

CNC machines. Caruso St John Architects recent work shows this move. The industrial

process of machined lace inspired the façade for Nottingham’s Centre of Contemporary Arts.

A small section of lace was digitally scanned and scaled. Then it was machine milled into a

thirteen-metre long resin board, from which a latex mould was produced to cast the final

pattern onto the buildings elevation (Figure 27).

‘While an industrialised mind-set contributed to

the death of ornamentation last century, today’s

designers have rediscovered that advanced

processes can not only make the production of

ornament easier, but also inspire its very

form.’ 32 Computer design has opened a new

realm of ornamentation never used before. Mass

production through CAM allows infinite

repetition in ornamentation, like that of the

metal disks seen on Selfridges Birmingham.

30

Manieri-Elia, M. & Sullivan, L. H. Louis Henry Sullivan. Page 121 31

Crime and Ornament, The Arts and Popular Culture in the Shadow of Adolf Loos, Page 29 32

Architectural Review, Nov 2007, Rob Gregory

Figure 27: Nottingham Centre for Contemporary Arts, 2004-2009.

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Further opportunities for patterning were discovered

by applying texture mapping onto warped surfaces.

Methods include video projection and embedded

digital displays. NURBS-surface tessellation became

possible by parametrically adapting each element to fit

its individual location. The example of Zaha Hadid’s

Civil Courts (Figure 28) shows that orientation and

aperture of tessellations can also be articulated to fit

with parametric environmental data to form an

adaptive façade, following the idea that ‘appearances

matter, but they matter as part of performance.’33 A

function has been found for the ornamentation and

patterning of a building envelope, promoting a new

style of parametricism.

PARAMETRIC ARCHITECTURE

Parametricism has its origins in the digital animation techniques of Greg Lynn, but has only

fully materialised recently through advanced parametric systems. 34 Unlike performance

architecture, parametricism emerges from the creative use of parametric design systems

rather than quantitative analysis. It unifies the separate principles and tools developed

through the digital revolution, forming a global convergence by twenty-first century avant-

garde architects to a new style of architectural language.

Today Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA) is an influential pioneer in the oeuvre of parametric

architecture. Founder Zaha Hadid (b.1950) is renowned for her strong arched shapes,

experimenting with new spacial concepts and stretching the limits of construction and

materials. Patrik Schumacher (b.1961), partner at ZHA says that ‘aesthetically it is the

elegance of ordered complexity and the sense of seamless fluidity, akin to natural systems,

that is the hallmark of parametricism.’35

Early works like Vitra Fire Station (Figure 29), 1993 in Germany, use sharp angles and

asymmetry to construct planes on different tiers, combined with flowing lines. Before

33

Schumacher, P. Parametric Patterns. Published in Garcia, M. The Patterns of Architecture. 34

Schumacher, P. Parametricism. Published in Leach, N. Digital Cities. Abstract 35

Schumacher, P. Parametricism. Published in Leach, N. Digital Cities. Page 16

Figure 28: Zaha Hadid, Civil Courts, Adaptive Facade, Madrid, 2007.

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computers Hadid’s designs were already complex; using multiple perspective points to

engage and unite observers with the neighbouring environment, but the computers

logarithmic power furthered this liberation. Computer technology has had an increasingly

important and influential impact on their work over the past decade, making curves easier to

draw than with the rudimentary French-curves, allowing Hadid to move from predominantly

conceptual designs to material realisation.36 The first three-dimensional modelling software

introduced in the company, ModelShop, did impose some early restrictions, as it was unable

to easily process changing radii. This effectively stiffened the geometry, but once the use of

splines was made available with VectorWorks the sketch designs could return unhindered.37

Hadid has managed to distance herself from the smooth aesthetics of early computer

investigations by creasing, ripping and folding tensed surfaces to create defined corners,

edges and angles whilst keeping a sense of liquefaction. CAD has not been allowed to take

over the design logic or identity of the company ‘Like all the tools she has used, the computer

helps Hadid become more Hadid’.38

Phaeno Science Centre and Nuragic Contemporary Art Museum (Figure 30 and 31) clearly

show the influence of computer modelling. 3D Studio Mac was used in the initial design

stages to deform and distort a topographical grid, elevating the bulk of the building on stilts

to generate a public space for visitors. An intricate network of pedestrian paths was then

moulded throughout the structure. Previous methods of sketch investigations and photocopier

distortion has been transferred to a more sophisticated and systematic process of computer

design.

36

Schumacher, P. Digital Hadid. Page 6 37

Hadid, Z. Zaha Hadid. Page 29 38

Hadid, Z. Zaha Hadid. Page 32

Figure 29: Zaha Hadid Vitra Fire Station Weil-am-Rhein, Germany, 1993.

Figure 30: Zaha Hadid Phaeno Science Centre, Wolfsburg, Germany, 2005.

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CONCLUSION

Computer-aided design has developed considerably within architecture since orthographic

drafting software of the 1980s, changing how buildings are conceived, designed and

produced. The major benefit is the increased productivity of easy manipulation. NURBS-

surfaces drove forward the computer’s ability to model complex curved forms and surfaces.

Greg Lynn pioneered this move with CATIA software, breaking away from inert volumes to

a new dynamic expressionism. As Ignasi de Solà-Morales said ‘architecture of modern times

is characterised by its capacity to take advantage of the specific achievements of that same

modernity.’

In some respects CAD is seen to diminish the role of architects, Lynn commenting that ‘I

would give software 51% of the credit for the design.’ The faster pace of drafting removes

the analytical process of drawing a line, resulting in some loss of connection between digital

images and the materials or methods that will be used to for realisation. Many firms allowed

CAD to take over design logic and company identity.

The most iconic forms created through computer modelling are found in the Blobitecture

movement, buildings such as Lars Spuybroek’s Water Pavilion, with homogeneous, fluid

curvaceous forms that defines the language of this digital age. These forms show similarities

to Gaudi, Candella and Expressionism, but on a new scale that has not been seen before. The

iconic status is achieved through juxtaposition with the surrounding urban fabric’s Cartesian

grids and Euclidian geometry, arguably losing all sense of context. Forms are derived by

manipulating the algorithms of the computer modelling software, a postmodernist rebellion

against the observed monotony of contemporary architecture. It is not just a tool for visual

representation, but a tool for digital morphogenesis, blurring interior and exterior boundaries.

Figure 31: Zaha Hadid Museum of Nuragic and Contemporary Art, Cagliari, Italy.

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However, these purely blobby buildings are seen by critiques as a pursuit of novelty, lacking

integrity or function required for them to be sustained. They have moved away from Louis

Sullivan’s concept of ‘form follows function’ to a sculptural iconography. One justification is

the economic benefits such as Frank Gehry’s Bilbao Guggenheim Museum, which brought

the city €320 million from tourism in 2008 alone.

Computers have given the three-dimensional freedom needed to inspire new aesthetic forms

that abandon the discourse of style, but it is more the application of automatic mathematical

analysis that gives structural integrity needed for construction. The combination of CAD and

CAM systems gives an integrated building process that brings a return to master builders. A

single 3D model shows all technical information required for realisation. A shift from the

bio-morphology of Blobitecture towards structural and performance-based architecture

utilises digital technologies ability for quantitative and qualitative performance based

simulation. Performance analysis addresses societies concerns on climate change, led

partially by Future Systems and Foster and Partners. The investigation of these examples

showed how use of various analytical computer models (CFD analysis, Acoustic propagation,

solar access) drove forward designs to give more intelligent and efficient buildings. The use

of CAD’s analytical capacity gives a significant change in how blob forms are perceived;

giving them meaning and function rather than just a result of the new freedoms in modelling.

Avant-garde architects strive to push the boundaries of materials and construction, and with

constant digital testing and rapid CNC prototyping the final products are seen to be of higher

quality. This shows emphasis on structure rather purely form. Through the chronology of

Foster and Partners work all of these changes have been seen in relationship to CAD

advances.

The modernist movement has been dominated by beliefs of Le Corbusier and Loos that there

should be no applied ornamentation. Now it seems to be an acceptable addition if designed

and manufactured using CAD and CAM, for example Nottingham Art Centre of

Contemporary Arts lace pattern. The introduction of parametric patterns had brought function

to new ornamentation and parametricism has begun to unite digital innovations. Zaha Hadid

epitomises the current state of digital technology, showing how the digital age has created

dynamic complicated liquid forms that have been given structural integrity and performance

features only possible using computer analysis. This investigation has shown undoubtedly

that the introduction of CAD has driven forward new developments in architectural forms. Copy

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FIGURE REFERENCES

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FIGURE 15 : http://www.arch.mcgill.ca/prof/sijpkes/D+C-winter-2005/pavillions_ concrete/

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BIBLIOGRAPHY

BOOKS

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McCullough, M., Mitchell, W., & Purcell, P. (1990) Electronic Design Studio Architectural

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THESIS

Howard, R. (2006) “CAD, Curved Surfaces and Building Quality." Thesis. Swedish School

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www.fosterandpartners.com/Data/WayWeWork.aspx 18/11/09

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2002, sec. 6: 42.

Williams, H. (2009) Frank Gehry: ‘Don’t call me a starchitect’. The Independent. 17 Dec

2009.

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