Category: LookingOutwards-03

Aaron Lee-LookingOutwards-03

BUGA Fibre pavilion by  University of Stuttgart’s Institute for Computational Design and Construction (ICD) and the Institute for Building Structures and Structural Design (ITKE)

The BUGA Fibre Pavilion is a combined work of biomimicry research and computational design through the means of digital fabrication. The pavilion’s 60 woven structural are consisted of using synthetic glass and carbon fibers by robot arms. The resulting cylindrical modules got their inspiration from insect wings and exoskeletons. Both the innovative material and the genuine shape create structural rigidity and integrity that is much stronger than traditional means of steel construction while being much lighter for mobility after disassembly I am especially impressed by the appearance of the project which really features sci-fi aesthetic, we always imagine either in movie or show. Also, the fact that it leaves zero carbon foot print is inspirational.

Researchers and robots team up to build innovative pavilion in a German garden

Jacky Tian’s Looking Outwards – 03

Computational Design + Architecture

— The Moving Curtain

BUND FINANCIAL CENTER BY FOSTER + PARTNERS

I grew up in Shanghai, China, a city with plenty of modern architecture and technology. Computational design never lacks in a city like Shanghai. A new mixed-use complex called the Bund Finance Center has just finished its last construction phase. Designed by Norman Foster’s Architecture Firm and collabrated with Thomas Heatherwick’s design studio, The Bund Finance Center becomes a new landmark of The Bund in Shanghai.

Besides the functional spaces for banking services, the building also includes a traditional chinese theatre and combined with the most advanced curtain wall technology controlled by computer calculated programs. The facade of this three-story-height building is composed of curtain like wall of bronze tubes. These bamboo shaped bronze tubes are constructed in three layers, creating semi-transparent screen for the building. The architect in charge described the facade as a “moving veil”, which can adapt and transform based on the current use of the space. 

As a fourth year student in architecture, I was inspired by the connection between architecture and computational fabricated technology. I personally utilized digital fabrication tools like laser cutting machine a lot for my projects. With the help from these tools, a lot of complicated and organic form can be achieved in a much easier manner.

Crystal Xue-LookingOutwards-03

LACE by Jenny Wu is an individual brand that focuses on 3D printing jewelry design. Jenny Wu and her husband are architects who are still practicing in the field. With an architectural background, all different kinds of digital fabrication technologies are learned and experimented pretty throughly. With more than 15 years of 3D printing experiences, designer and architect Jenny Wu had incorporated architectural elements into jewelry design and created her collection of 3D printing wearable line – LACE.

“Stria” – fully 3D printed from a strong yet flexible nylon-based polymer

I am really impressed by how delicate these pieces are done. All the jewelry pieces are modeled parametrically. Applying that concept into a new design field is already an innovative move. Taking a step further, 3D printing technology gave her the opportunity to turn the intricate and creative interdisciplinary artwork into practice.

Sydney Salamy: Looking Outwards-03

The project Wanderers from 2014 is a collaboration between Christoph Bader, Neri Oxman and the Mediated Matter Group. The first part is a video demonstrating a computational growth process they designed. The video shows a series of computational objects that transform in very interesting ways as time goes on. They then used this growth process to create a sort of “clothing”. This clothing looks almost like glass sculptures except they seem almost organic and are made for wearing.

 

  • I enjoy a lot about this project. First off, the pieces look very beautiful. The designs are varied and interesting, and look like glass sculptures found in museums. The experimentation with organic things like intestines gave the pieces a very unique look. Some of them, especially “Otaared”, looked like an exotic plant or creature found creeping along the darker parts of the ocean. The colors were also very aesthetically pleasing, with a tendency towards bright colors and pretty gradients as well. The mix of clear and opaque material also added something nice to the pieces. I admire this because I like art, so seeing how much effort was put into their looks makes me enjoy them even more, especially considering the looks were unnecessary. I say unnecessary because apparently the aim of the pieces was to have organic matter embedded into them in order to help sustain humans. They could have just been for practical use and not look pretty, but the creators still decided to put effort into the artistic side of the project. It’s also smart since it will cause people to want to buy them more. Their goal was very interesting to me. I liked the little descriptions for each of the four pieces, how each one was for a different planet or for the moon, and then how the pieces were made to fit the specific environments of those places. Most clothing doesn’t have a greater purpose like that. The idea of creations where the environment interacts beneficially with humans is also one I think is great. Whenever there is talk about humans and the environment, it always seems negative, like a one versus the other relationship. So the idea of having organic matter like algae live in clothing to help humans breath is a nice change.
  • I haven’t seen the algorithm that generated the work. However, I do know it was meant to imitate natural growth behavior. I assume it is a pretty advanced algorithm considering the results it created, especially since the results vary greatly in their looks.
  • The artistic sensibilities of the artist are pretty much all mentioned above in the “what I admire about it” section. Their interest in organic forms can be seen in the final products. Instead of following the colors of these organic forms, they brightened up the pieces with varied color use and use of gradient.
One of the pieces from "Wanderer" called "Otaared"
One of the pieces from “Wanderer” called “Otaared”

William Su – Looking Outwards – 03

Parametric World

This was made by vibrating a pool of water at a certain frequency. This creates a pattern of standing waves known as Faraday Waves. Higher frequencies create more complicated patterns. (Image and video credit: L. Gledhill)

I was especially intrigued by the complexity and how “lifelike” this generated pattern is. It almost looks like a microscopic cell, sea creature, or a CAT scan of body part. It is also interesting how completely different patterns are generated, even if the frequencies are off by a few Hertz. This I feel like adds to the “organic” nature of the project as there is just infinite possibilities and repeatabilities with this.

Kristine Kim – Looking Outward-03

Glass II at La Triennale di Milano. Top view of the three columns in high brightness mode. Designed and constructed by the Mediated Matter group, MIT Media Lab.

Glass II, a sequel of project Glass I by Andy Ryan is a high- fidelity, monumental, and additive manufacturing technology for 3D printing “optically transparent glass.” To create the computational aspect of the installation, the team used constraints of the manufacturing platform and structural system and generated each of the glass column’s form. This demonstrates the ability to 3D print a wide range of shapes and sizes determined by the desired outcome of the creator. I was drawn into this project because of the dynamic and contrasting light source and its simple yet intense atmosphere. Each of the glass column is fitted with a dynamic internal lighting system called the “una stellina” and it is programmed to travel up and down the column, projecting a large “caustic footprint with kaleidoscope-like patterns.” This piece is very intriguing to me  because I am currently enrolled in a conceptual art studio class called Space and Time and this installation challenges the perceived limits and boundaries between time and space.

Jai Sawkar – Looking Outwards – 03

Experimental Pavilion of Ceramic Bricks in China by Robotic Fabrication LAB of The Faculty of Architecture of HKU

It is often argued that digital fabrication is the next step in fabrication, both at a large scale and small scale. Technology companies use laser cutters, 3D printers, and CNC routers in both their iterative & final products and architecture & design are following as well. With digital fabrication, components can not only be more precise, but more dynamic as well. It is reasons like this that organizations, like the Robotic Fabrication LAB of the Faculty of Architecture of HKU, are beginning to change the status-quo of components dating back centuries.

When bricks used in structures were first mass-produced, they were made in small rectangles, allowing both consistency and allowing it to be held in a single hand, easily, by builders. Now with advancements in digital fabrication, designers, like the one noted above, can begin to change our perception of bricks; in this case, both the shape and the material are unlike what the common person is used to.

This is incredibly interesting and intriguing to me, as I, and many others, believe that this type of technology will advance tremendously in the next decades. With these advancements, I truly cannot wait to see what new structures and forms can be created with a plethora more of opportunity.

Article

Monica Chang – Looking Outwards- 03

Neri Oxman and MIT develop a collection of programmable bio-composites for Digital Fabrication called Aguahoja. They developed Aguahoja in response to the cumbersome, plastic consumption occurring globally which has been intoxicating our planet. With this, they hope to create a solution that corrupts this toxic cycle of plastic by uniting the “made” and nature to produce an organic environment that can be constructed and deconstructed without harming the earth’s soil.

This collection is digitally designed and robotically manufactured out of the most available materials on earth- materials within trees, insect exoskeletons , apples, and bones- in hopes of avoiding depleting more of Earth’s materials.

“…this work points toward a future where the grown and the made unite.”

Although the structures are all built from the same components, the structural makeup and its purpose in an environment vary.

I admire this piece because of its insightfulness towards the world and its current condition. The amount of research and intricate pieces created for this project intrigues me. It’s nice to know that there definitely is a way that we can avoid polluting our planet even further without changing anything about halting our momentum for modernizing the world.

Lauren Park-Looking Outwards-03

3D printed physical objects
Artist: The Mediated Matter Group

This project takes 2D data or digital information and converts it into 3D models and physical forms using 3D printing. I really admire this project and the way creative material is made using color and shape to represent data. This is because of how important it is to not only be able to analyze information and graphs or maps by looking at screens, but have an easier understanding of what this image would look like when it is visualized in real life, or off-screen. Multi-material 3D printing is mainly used to to transfer and convert various kinds of data, such as medical information like an MRI, visualized on the screen to physical objects. The artists satisfy the need and curiosity of how people can benefit from using tangible data the just digitally. All such complex information can be combined or put together to create a more sensible image for the brain to understand.

https://www.media.mit.edu/projects/making-data-matter/overview/

Project: Making Data Matter: Voxel-printing for the digital fabrication of data across scales and domains

Artist: The Mediated Matter Group

Katrina Hu – Looking Outwards – 03

Voxel-Printing of the Human Brain

Data physicalization of the human brain, made by the Mediated Matter Group

The Mediated Matter Group at MIT uses a multimaterial voxel-printing method. This enables the physical visualization of data sets. These data sets are visualized on a screen, and then converted into physical 3-D objects. One of the objects that stood out to me was the physicalization of the human brain. The viewer is able to see various brain structures, including bundles of axons that connect different parts of the brain.

I admire this work because it allows people to actually visualize structures that may otherwise be hard to see. It is very effective, as physical manifestations of data sets can improve spatial perception skills. It also makes the presentation of new information more intuitive for students. It allows much more interaction than 2-D information displays.

To generate this work, the group converts data sets into dithered material deposition descriptions. The data sets then can be visualized on screen and can later be converted into physical objects.