LookingOutwards-03 – Page 3 – [OLD FALL 2018] 15-104 • Introduction to Computing for Creative Practice

Nina Yoo Section E LookingOutwards- 03

Andrew Kudless takes basic geometry alongside nature in order to create designs that seem to use less materials, but also create strong structures. A lot of his work can be used as a replacement/upgrade for current objects we have now as well as buildings. I am inspired as a designer because being able to create unique patterns while also considering the logistics of it and using the nature’s strongest forms, is something that is difficult to achieve. His simple yet mathematical designs creates another pathway for other designers to consider what nature and years or math research has to offer. The algorithm that generates this work derives from patterns found in nature and relates it to geometrical patterns and tries to find a way where the two creates the best results for a certain object. Andrew Kudless expresses art in his work by choosing which patterns go together and whether or not he decides to create a complicated structure or creates a structure that provides the minimum in order to convey his idea.

https://www.pinterest.com/matsys/computational-design/

Anthony Ra – Looking Outwards – 03

Wood-Skin Video

Wood-Skin is a fabrication firm that attempts to use ideas of digital fabrication and typical building materials to build new composite materials and technology. It is described as the most flexible 3D surfaces for architecture and design.

Wood-skin can be altered into whatever function and decor is wanted

The process begins with a digital model through a CAD file. What also makes this project unique is the variety of materials that can be utilized such as wood, metal, acrylic, etc. In reality, wood-skin is fabricated with the combination of pliable nylon and polymer mesh.

The composite materials are generated from a digital file to a CNC mill where a series of modules of the same algorithm can be realized by fabricating them. They can also be altered based on thickness, pliability, and even overall shape.

wood-skin can be altered into different triangular patterns

The benefit of this computative fabrication is the elimination of a complex understructure that may be needed for complex forms. One can alter the pattern in however manner they like and can pave the way as using composite materials an option for building material.

Romi Jin – Looking Outwards 03

Having taken an architecture course about computation fabrication (Fundamentals of Computational Design), I have some familiarity in this field. After researching a few examples, HG’s Opening Chronometry interested me. In the class I took, I created many parametric pavilions similar to that of HG Architecture’s. The process is essentially translating a shell into a larger shell — placing double-layered cones into a mathematical pattern created using Grasshopper.

(above) Grasshopper-created parametric system of units to assemble a pavilion.

It is interesting to think how a small-scale structure built using simple units can potentially be transformed into a large-scale home or building using a modular system. Parametric systems use a strict logic to create its design; however, this logic can be flexibly manipulated into visually different forms for different purposes as well. Computational fabrication can also be used to help build cheap, sustainable and easy-to-assemble homes, as well as speed up the process and lessen the effort placed into the whole process of construction.

Joanne Lee – Looking Outwards 03

The Spire Dress, part of the LYIS Collection, is completely 3-D printed with 400+ individual tiled pieces.

3-D printing has been making its way into fashion for the past several years. Designer Alexis Walsh unveiled The Spire Dress at New York Fashion Week in 2016. I think that 3-D printing brings an entirely new dimension to fashion design and the result is beautiful and intricately detailed collections. The Spire Dress is a result of more than 400 tiles printed on nylon plastic and were individually assembled by hand using metal ring connections. The dress took 6 months to design and put together, and it was inspired by cathedral spires.

Although the dress repeats the same spiral shape in various renditions, the result is something unique from the tiles that make it up. Walsh prototyped the dress on MakertBot 3-D bot printers before sending the final design to be laser cut. Personally, I believe that there is something very captivating about this dress. Perhaps it can be accredited to each tile of the dress being cut very precisely, creating a very clean and geometrical feel to the dress. As someone who attends CMU’s Lunar Gala every year, I hope to see some 3-D printed lines this year!

The repeated spiral shapes were inspired by cathedral spires.

Jaclyn Saik Looking Outwards 3

Computational digital fabrication is a really practical application of code. Having a little bit of experience with laser cutting and 3d printing and talking to a lot of passionate people about CNC mills, I see how many technical applications there are for physical objects generated out of code. In Professor Levin’s article about Parametric 3D form, I was especially interested in the design system for the parametric human body. It reminded me a lot of a video game I used to play when I was younger, Sims 3, where you could go in and highly customize a character’s physical appearance, but a lot of the traits would be related and relative to each other. I also found his article neat because it used phrases like “artist-researchers”: Aa a designer interested in STEM applications, it’s cool to see a word that synthesizes these things.

I was drawn to Oxman’s Mediated Matter group at the MIT Media Lab because they talked a lot about using computation to mimic or explore nature-driven designs, which is something I discovered while researching for last week’s Looking Outwards and something I think is a fascinating way to pull computer science full circle into the natural world. One project that this group made is called “Rottlace” (September 2016), where they designed a mask system for the popular Icelandic singer Björk. This mask is designed to look like “a face without skin”, and I think they achieved their goal, as you can see in the image.

Björk’s “Face without Skin”. This is the singer first trying on the mask, after going through weeks of measuring and testing in order to generate code to create it.

I really admire this work because it is so technical in creation, but so natural in final form. It takes a great deal of artistic decision-making to make sure it is accurate, but not gory. The reason this example of computational digital fabrication is so interesting is because this team is tasked with generating very organic objects, like muscles and ligaments in the face, from code. They account for what they call “property transitions”, which means when there is harder bone versus cartilage versus soft tissue versus muscle, by changing the way their algorithms are set up. Bones are more geometric-based, while ligaments are obtained as “cloud point data” based on plotted points from the shape of Björk’s face. All in all, this sounds like a beautiful and complicated project. Like IDeAte on steroids!

Dani Delgado Looking Outwards-03

A snapshot of the Lumen Project in the day.

The project I chose to research was “Lumen” – a beautiful structure that stands in the intersection of architecture, design, biology, and engineering. This cutting-edge project was developed in 2018 by the Jenny Sabin Studio in Ithaca, NY in order to create an adaptive environment that provides physical comfort and physiological wonder at all times of the day. At night, the fabric provides and phosphorescent light, as it is woven with materials that can capture, collect, and release light. Then, in the day, this same fabric structure protects its visitors from harsh sunlight and releases mist based on proximity to cool them down.

This project was developed using mathematics simulations, which I do not know much about, and later used digital modeling programs (presumably AutoDesk) to more fully develop the environment. Originally, I was attracted to this project solely based on its stunning visuals; however, once I learned about the sheer amount of interdisciplinary work that went into this project, I was in awe. The combination of the STEM and creative fields is what I believe the future to be, as we cannot advance as a people without acknowledging both aspects of the human mind. This train of thought directly connects to the Jenny Sabin Studio, as they try to focus on the intersection of architecture and science. These two different perspectives can clearly be observed in looking at this final work.

The full Lumen project at night to show the scale of the work

Above: A Youtube video showing a VR digital model of the Lumen Project.

Website: http://www.jennysabin.com/lumen

Jisoo Geum – Looking Outwards – 03

Circular Knitic 2014, created by Varvara Guljajeva and Mar Canet.http://www.varvarag.info/circular-knitic/

Circular Knitic is an automated machine made by an artist duo, Varvara Guljajeva and Mar Canet, which renders textile designs into a physical form through knitting.

The duo first began the project in 2012 when they were interested in working with knitting machines. Although knitting machines have existed since 1976, they became obsolete over time due to the lack of accessibility. As a solution, the duo developed an idea of an open source contemporary knitting machine that can be made by digital fabrication media. They achieved the goal in 2014 by creating Circular Knitic and uploaded the open source file on GitHub so that anyone who has the access to 3D printer, laser cutter, makerbeam, and Arduino can build the machine on their own. The algorithm that was used for their early design of Circular Knitic was a board that holds control over obsolete machines and knit patterns through a computer. At a glance, the machine itself did not seem like an artwork, which is the reason why it fascinated me the most. Circular Knitic was a machine made by digital fabrication ‘machines’ that can create an infinite amount of new artworks through soft sculpture. Furthermore, the fact that anyone can have access to the machine and render their own unique vision seemed like a perfect example of new media. The images that come to my mind when I think about digital fabrication are usually hard objects such as a sculpture with intricate surface patterns and cutouts (or even products such as fidget spinners). But making a machine that produces soft fabrics that not only is an artwork on its own but also can become a resource for daily life and fashion was inspiring. The duo has shown passion in creating interactive artworks using coding and visual arts for many years, but I could see their vision the most clearly in Circular Knitic project since it is a work of art that requires the most interaction.

Adam He – Looking Outwards – 03

Installation fabricated digitally using parametric modeling by Achim Menges

In the highly parametric society we have today, architects are getting more interested in biomimetics. Using generative modeling, architects and designers utilize computational science to create systematic pattern and structure that mimic the ecology of the nature. Achim Menges has his research field concentrated at the area of digital fabrication and computational design in relations to morphology. In this project, he attempts to integrate biomimetic investigations and cutting-edge robotic fabrication together. Menges employs fiber as the outer skin that wraps the whole structure, which in other words, is demonstrating how natural organic materials and artificial steel frames harmonize the overall design of the installation. Achim Menges tries to challenge the conventional ways of thinking towards architecture, and approaches to the designs that unfold morphological complexity. Trying to find a balance between the opposites such as space and material, form and structure, Menges uses digital fabrication to create novel designs that have not yet been done previously.

The link below has more detailed information about this installation.

ICD/ITKE Research Pavilion 2013/14, Design Society

Looking Outwards 3- Sara Frankel

Caption: Combining technology with the art of the instrument, this artist creates a playable violin with a 3D printer.

This project harmonizes the art of code and music together. It does so by means of using a 3D printer to produce a playable violin. What I admire about this project is the fact that someone was capable of making a plastic shape make music. This is inspirational to me in the sense that, being a music major, music is found everywhere in many different kinds of mediums. The fact that someone is able to speak through an instrument made by a machine is amazing as it truly speaks for the modern day; this project is the culmination of the art of code and music. An aspect of this project that would incorporate an algorithm is the fact that when the bow of the instrument is brought to the string, how the instrument will produce a sound.

Senyai: Lighting and Acoustics

EPIPHYTE Lab, led by Dana Cupkova and Gretchen Craig, recently completed this architectural installation from new Shadyside Thai restaurant, Senyai (2017.)

Final installation in Senyai

This project, inspired by a body of water, utilizes 275 unique slats, to control acoustic levels and lighting in this small restaurant. Utilizing Architectural design software, Rhinoceros and Grasshopper, EPIPHYTE Lab was able to produce a script that creates the specific geometries for each panel based on where the highest noise levels were located and where those sound levels were dissipating.

Drawing of sound vectors affect on geometry

After creating the geometries, the software then produces the form of each panel and that panel can thus be digitally fabricated using a laser cutter, or most likely a CNC Router.

Each panel being completely unique is what led to the success of the installation. Each vault rises and falls, almost perfectly, so that the eye moves slowly over the geometry and follows the wave-like sensitivity of the form. The production of completely unique panels is greatly eased by the computational and digital software utilized. It would not be the same project with human constraints.

What led my love for this project is the intimacy of the product. This is truly a space making installation that is both functional and beautiful.

Read more about this project here: http://www.epiphyte-lab.com/senyai