Category: LookingOutwards-03

Joanne Chui – Looking Outwards 03

Autodesk’s Generative Design Pavilion 2016
https://www.archdaily.com/804456/autodesks-generative-design-pavilion-plays-with-properties-and-fabrication-processes-in-stone-and-fabric

Autodesk’s Generative Design Pavilion was designed by architect Sean Ahlquist and research engineer Andrew Payne to explore materiality using stone and fabric. It is interesting in how it wants to compare the different material properties of stone and fabric, juxtaposing the strength of the limestone to the flexibility of the fabric, but also merge them to create similar forms. Not only was the form generatively designed, but the fabric was customized as well. Although the fabric and the stone created similar forms, the algorithms used to create them would have been extremely different. The algorithm for fabric would have worked to exploit how the fabric stretched, while the one for the stone would have worked to calculate its breaking points and subtraction of form. The designers’ artistic sensibilities arise in the final structure not only through the form, in which the completely different materials manifest the same form, but also in the joinery that connects them. Where the fabric and stone meets, they elegantly are able to describe both material properties with having the strength of the stone stretch the canopy of fabric above.

Angela Lee — Looking Outwards —03

“The Arabesque Wall” in relation to viewers, photo from Benjamin Dillenburger’s website.
Details of “The Arabesque Wall” by Benjamin Dillenburger, sourced from his website.

“The Arabesque Wall,” created by Benjamin Dillenburger in collaboration with Michael Hansmeyer, is an ornate, 3D printed wall generated with algorithmic geometry. This piece was particularly interesting to me because of how it pays homage to elaborate, arabesque historical architectural trends while also appealing to modern users. I think that modern design trends are often associated with simplicity and efficiency, yet this wall breaks those assumptions with its delicate curves and excessive details. In his website, Dillenburger explains how the algorithm used to create this piece was geometric, mathematical, but iterative; these qualities allow for a sense of cohesiveness throughout the piece but also completely unique tiles, which add to the richness and wonder elicited by the wall. What excites me about this piece also is how 3D printing was used to create such a physically complex design. “The Arabesque Wall” not only transcends modern paradigms surrounding aesthetics and designs but also opens my eyes to the possibilities of what can be created using 3D printing

Ellan Suder LookingOutwards-03

  • Parametric developed structure and facade
  • Departure Hall

The Shenzen Bao’an International Airport, designed by Massimiliano Fuksas and Knippers Helbig (2013), is a large scale building designed with parametric fabrication.

I was actually in this airport before, but I didn’t know how it was designed until I looked up parametric design. According to this article, the building is meant to evoke the image of a manta ray, “a fish that breathes and changes its own shape, undergoes variations, turns into a bird to celebrate the emotion and fantasy of a flight.” It’s really incredible in person — the honeycomb-like windows and smooth silver curves look organic and futuristic. The sheer number of windows is lovely to look at.

I couldn’t find more information about the exact algorithms used to design the space, but the purpose of Helbig’s algorithm was to place the 60,000 panels onto a free form design. “Due to the free form design and varying dimensions of the façade panels a parametric development of the geometry was necessary.”

Kimberlyn Cho- Looking Outwards- 03

Iris van Herpen collaborated with various designers and architects to create 3D printed magnetic dresses and accessories called “Magnetic Motion”. Her inspiration for this SPRING/SUMMER 2015 collection came from a Swiss scientific research facility called CERN, which researches and manufactures magnetic fields in incredible scales. Herpen experimented with different metal-infused materials with magnets to avoid repetition in her designs, as well as techniques such as injection moulding and laser cutting to emphasize details and complexity. Her diversity in use of materials and minimal color palette give each piece a different focus while maintaining a cohesive story.

Model wears a 3D printed clear dress made in collaboration with architect Niccolo Casas.

I was intrigued by the practical use of digital fabrication in every day life. Generative art, specifically digital fabrication, is often used in the context of installations due to its intricate process and limit in medium and form. However, Herpen uses the process in a more applicable approach for the general public. She shows the promising future of digital fabrication by using it to create something directly usable by people. I found this approach very practical, innovative, and suggestive of a future most definitely more reliant on digital fabrication than now.

Erin Lim – Looking Outwards 03 –

Anoma is a product design studio headed by Ruchika Grover to produce artwork made of natural stone, using a combination of digital manufacturing and traditional hand craftmanship.

What I admire about Grover’s work is that she incorporates natural textures and shapes of nature itself into her work. She first draws a 2-D illustration on paper, and then uses computer-aided modeling for precise measurements and adding intricate details. This is where she modifies the measurements before she develops the prototype.

A 3-D mapped prototype of Anoma that resembles a leaf’s veins

Then, prototypes are developed for about 4-6 months with dimensions translated into manufacturing directives and into a Computer Numerical Controlled (CNC) milling machine. A cylindrical tool then cuts and drills based on computer directions, with recycled water circulated in order to regulate the temperature of the cutting tool and base stone so that the rapid tool doesn’t wear and there’s no thermal expansion of the stone.

Another prototype of Grover’s studio 3-D mapped of natural forms

Finally, artisans carve detailed textures into the stone which adds a human touch to the digitally-fabricated artwork.

To the viewers, you could clearly see Grover’s background and interest in botanics as her inspiration for her artwork. The shapes and intricate details of each work resembles some shape or texture to those of nature. It is fascinating to see an artist create a work of nature generated by computer.

Link to Grover’s work: https://www.archdaily.com/898786/digital-design-and-indian-craft-merge-to-generate-these-beautiful-cladding-patterns

Chelsea Fan-Looking Outward-03

Digital Fabrication by Marius Watz consists of 3D Printing, CNC Technology, and innovation to create new digital crafts. Watz uses creative technologies to make 3D artwork for various uses.

I admire that Watz uses 3D printing not just for art, but for daily needs such as Furniture Assembly, jewelry like rings and earrings, light installations, etc. His artwork has a sense of uniqueness for each individual piece. It is inspiring to see art that incorporates a different “look” and use.

Watz used 3D printing to create Connectors for Easy Furniture Assembly. (Undated)

One critique that I have is that although Watz creates an abundance of different pieces for various reasons, it does not seem as if there is any specific”style” that really represents “Watz’s Art”. There isn’t any notable part of his art that tells viewers that a certain display/piece is created by Watz. This makes it less likely that the name and brand Watz has created will be widely known or spread.

Watz’s Wearable Sculpture (Undated)

More artwork by Watz is available at this link: https://www.pinterest.com/watzmarius/digital-fabrication/

Paul Greenway – Looking Outwards 03

The Adaptation chair designed by Joris Laarman Lab, experiments with the possibilities of generative design and digital fabrication techniques in the field of furniture design. The form of the chair seems to rise organically with branches that continuously split as the thicker legs become the more dense seat and back. When designing the chair, the team made use of generative algorithms to mimic cell growth in nature. Then through parametric design, the final form was generated based on the behavior of the initial algorithm. This cellular structure creates an interesting visual style for the furniture while maintaining structural integrity throughout the form.

In terms of fabrication, the chair is 3D printed from nylon that is plated with copper for structural and aesthetic purposes. I found the final product to be very successful and a great showcase of the power of combining generative design with digital fabrication tools.

Sean Meng – Looking Outwards 03

Active Inlay Installation by Oyler Wu Collaborative
Link: https://www.oylerwu.com/projects

Oyler Wu Collaborative is a versatile design collaborative found by architects Dwayne Oyler and Jenny Wu. The firm focuse on architecture design and expand their unique design language and workflow to a broader design field. In their work, they frequently engage computational fabrication technique such as CNC routing and 3D printing to present their study model and other design collections. In their “Active Inlay” project, a set of art piece that discusses spatial condition such as line, surface and volume was generated and designed with computational modeling tool like grasshopper and Rhinoceros. And they are fabricated in CNC routed wood and 3D printed plaster. The final presentation of the work truly shows the expandable potential of architecture design and digital fabrication. 

Siwei Xie – Looking Outwards 03

Kinematics dress fits the model’s body to the largest extent, and the combination of small panels allows it to flow according to new movements. Image source: Nervous System.

I’m greatly inspired by the 3D printed Kinematics Dress that is directly generated from body scans and requires absolutely no assembly. I have some exposures to the extremely expensive “haute couture” fashion that is based on the concept of ultimate customerization. Yet today, technology can reproduce this concept more efficiently and cheaply when mass production is possible. 

In terms of the algorithms that generate the work, each dress is composed of thousands of small triangular panels that are connected by hinges. Although the material is nylon (a slightly rigid material), the body cannot feel unconformable because according to the creator, “continuous fabric allows the dress to flexibly conform and fluidly flow in response to body movement.” 

The creators are able to arrange the triangular panels in a way that artistically mimics floral print on a dress. Panels even act as look-through laces that you can find on a normal dress. The structure and cut of the dress are also aesthetically satisfying.  

Link to Kinematics Dress created by Jessica Rosenkrantz from Nervous System, 2014-2016.

Lanna Lang – Looking Outwards – 03

Benjamin Dillenburger & Michael Hansmeyer’s “Digital Grotesque” / 2013, 2017

Digital Grotesque is made up of two full-size grottos that were 3D printed out of sandstone. It is a highly ornamented structure that was designed by algorithms, depicting how new technology is leading to radical changes in architectural design, and Digital Grotesque demonstrates this by taking this new technology to a scale never done before – truly life-sized. What I find admirable is the absolute intricacy of each crevice in this piece. The work is a 3.2-meter-high, 16 square meters long room, and is crammed full of minute details that stand between chaos and order.

Nothing can make this project any more perfect than it already is. It suggests an unimagined richness that at a glance can be overwhelming, and all the viewers can do is marvel, become curious and bewildered. One “flaw” that could be said about this piece is the seams between each 3D printed section, but I actually enjoy seeing the seams as a viewer because it’s a reminder of where this was initially conceived from; it’s not pretending to be built from stone or marble, it’s accepting its 3D printed quality. I applaud the creators who perfectly executed the concept full of juxtaposition: complexity yet reductionism, chaos and order, natural and artificial, foreign and familiar through its architectural design, composition, and geometric processes.

This project was reminiscent towards the Church of Sagrada Familia by Spanish architect Antonio Gaudi, and the artists are architects, programmers, and professors who are passionate about exploring the vast opportunities that computation applications can affect design and fabrication of architectural forms.

An image of the view looking up in the grotto II that depicts the sheer vastness and how ornamental, chaotic, and beautiful it is.
A video of the behind the scenes process of building “Digital Grotesque”
A video that shows fragments of the digital fabrication of “Digital Grotesque” and the computer-generated render.