Module 4: ReflectionJohn LyStudent No: 641003 Semester 1/2013 Group 5

Module 1: Ideation

“... through simple, local interactions between many components of a sys-tem a form of physical computation that gives rise to self-organisation and emergent structure and behaviours” (Ball, P., 2012, pp.22)

What struck my interest is the pattern of sprials that are contained within the seahorses tail is the way in which it grows in an exponential manner. The growth is contributed to is part of a self repeating algorithm that adds the previous two numbers. As such the algorithm sequence gives way to an emergent property and is the basis of my design. In particular the growth of the spiral as well as . The algorithm’s growth is something that is reflected in my eventual design and because it deviated from the recipe it gave way to a new composition that is similar to the Fibonacci spiral but is its own pat-tern. Like the snowflakes methodology explored by Lasch, it is ultimately the method which gives way to the structure of my design.

Natural image analysis

“The moment any sort of development is imposed onto this formless matter it begins to enter the realm of substance organization, and material” (Aranda B., Lasch C., pp.8)

The method and recipe gives way to the foundations of design and this is something I have gradually grasped throughout the semester. When we first dealt with natural patterns and Kandinsky’s method of analytical draw-ing we attempted to break down and simplify our image into geomotrical shapes and analysed the balance, symmetry and scale. Breaking them down into individual components, they are the ‘ingredients’ that give natural shape and form to the seahorse. While Aranda and Lasch method seemed to restrictive, however under the premise of the readin we con-struct our own recipes to develop our ideation process.

To a large extent the recipe of a Fibonacci spiral can be represented through mathematical ratios, and this is evident in my recipe. However scaling carries through through each module of my design and become an important aspect of my full scale model. While the scaling is the defined by the Fibonacci sequence, in some ways I break the natural pattern during the later stages of my deiign process

Elements of the natural pattern

This part of the module inspired us to adapt our natural patterns through extrusion as well as an emerging from the base. Refering back to the idea of recipe, when I attempted to develop using the elements, The way that I utilised on each element changed the form of the paper model.

With the extruded form I adopted the symmetry and scale elements of the spiral to develop my form. This created an interesting shape along one plain, however was too flat and understated unlike the spiral.With the second model I maintened the concept of scaling and growth, and further emphasised it rather than focus on other elements to create to form the emerging form.

Evidently,there has been a shift it how the design of the paper model has been constructed there is a difference in how they look. This further emphasises the importance of the recipe, as well as how this translate through to its digitisation and beyond this module.

Paper model and digitilisation

Early on during the ideation process I tried took into consid-eration of how the lantern might interact with the arm (held, be wrapped around) considered having my lamp wrapped around this as it complemented the spiral’s curvature.

The first clay model basically mimic my emerging form. Dur-ing thisperiod of time. we begin to have a sense of physical interaction of how the materials might influence the stability of the structure. At this point there were signs that it would not be a feasible at there were instabilities with how all the weight was concentrated from above and transferred to the bottom secton, in particularly where it was rather thin, meaning bends began to occur.

The second I intended to form a lantern around the lamp. In particularly when crafting this lantern there was some issues with the disproportinate weight especially at the top. The way in which the mdoel curled proved that there might be issue with such a concept

Clay model

Source: ArchDaily

From the ideation process we were asked to take inspiration from some form of architecture and mines was a proposal by Influx_Studio for the New Taipei City Museum of Art. There is a distinctive dispersion of light where each section meets and I attempted to incorporate this element into my full scale model, the idea is that each overlapping component creates a dispersed lighting from each layer of the building.

Given that this buildings scale increasingly, I tried to take into consideration the possibilities of stresses and inverted the scaling and developed a clay model concept of how my design could further develop and deviate from the spiraling concept. As such there is a conscous effort through the next cou-ple of module to be able to incorporate this inspiration.

Architectural inspiration:New Taipei City Museum of Art Proposal

Overall reflectionDuring this module, it has helped developed my design process and allowed to begin to analyse the components of designs to formulate a working model. The introduction of Aranda and Lansch as well as Poling has solidified the importance of recipe that individual process creates a deviation in the final design and it is because of this we can develop an array of concepts.

What the ideation process highlights the implications of taking inspiration from nature. Nature can help develop our designs, however while we can borrow from it, it should not be the highlight of your design but inspire to create an individual compilation that deviates from it.

Module 2: Design

In between the ideation and design process I attempted to reconcile the possible with my emerging form and how it would interact with the arm and how it would sustain itself. This was done my attempting to place more emphasis of the detail-ing of a section rather than repetition in the scaling of each section. Scaling also translated over to this model, however is meant spending more time figuring out how the model would work and

Looking back at my redeveloped model, while it did tackle some some steps in deviating from my emergin form, it took some steps back. The model lacked the cohesion and con-nection back to my precedence adn focus too much on the spiralling pattern of my original . This reflected during this mod-ule.

Contouring

“Reduction, in contrast to abstraction, is not about reducing the amount of information but rather about finding the optimal way to transport it, hence rewriting the description without altering the content.” (Scheurer, F. and Stehling, H., 2011)

Taking pictures from orthographic views, I attempted to replicate repli-cate my model, however I ran into problems such as not following cer-tain methods to a tee and combined methods to digitise it. In hindsight this caused a lot of issues with the surface not being smooth and an oversimplification of the shape and form of the model.

During the lecture , where Alex talks about 1+1=1, it was rather abstract at first but as I developed my model, I understood what he meant. The components and details combine into a singular form and give the voer-all form and purpose to my latern, one which I lacked at this stage of the process at the time.

As such when I reduced my model, I model in a way which the readings advised against oversimplifying, and losing the details lost thecomposition of the model as well as details such as the curvuture of model when it was physically model. Thus other details are lost during this digitisation process.

Orthographic Contouring

Perspective view

Active State Passive StateRetracting State

Heatherwick studio - ‘Rolling Bridge’

“Instead of what it is, our focus was on the way it worked” (Heatherwick, T., 2011)

Thomas Heatherwick’s ‘Rolling Bridge’ encapsulates an aspect of how our lighting effects should be executed, where there is a function to its design rather than being simply a latern that projects light. As Heatherwick puts it the way in which a bridge acts makes him cringe and that he wanted to give purpose. While during it’s active state it is a simple timber and steel bridge, the way in which it retracts gives it an aesthetic purpose and the passive state it not merely statics but can be moved around.

During my design process, I attempt to analyse how the paneling prototypes acts in such as way between its unlit and lit state and thus develop my own functional effect that my lantern might exhibit. While the process is not evident during this module and considerations are taken. It is not evident until the final model that the effects take full effect,

Prototype #1: Triangular faces Prototype #2: Pyrimidal protrusion

+ the direct lighting was relatively clear+ flexible- too flat and two dimensional- too open/fragile

In terms of the shadow projected, it was very distinct projection. The panelling itself disguises the overall shape. None the less, it still suffers from simplicity. Additionally the thi-ness of the paper meant that while it is suitable for the curvature, but was rather fragile and already began to deform at the lightest of pressure.

+ could creates an interfering pattern+ created 3d dimensional sense- too closed- lost its form- too many elements

With this prototype my intention was to create a 3d dimensional effect. The base had a distinctive pattern. However the construction required con-structions of element seperate from each other and in the long run would mean that. Ad-ditionally it lost its overall form would be overshadowed by the oversimplified shape of the digitised model.

Module 2 gives a slight insight into the difficulties we encountered during the fabrication process. The purpose of this module was to translate the physical structure into the digital realm and translating it back into the physical realm. This is to create make the model more developable. In particularly with my model, where there are extensive areas of curvature, there is a necessity to create developable surfaces that can translate into a workable lantern.

Reflecting on Module 2, I attempted to recreate emy origi-nal model to create the pinching effect that was produced on the clay model. It reflected a more detailed and repre-sented glimpse of the architectural precent. The curvature in between the sections, could bend the lighting that come through the openings.

In hindsight, during this process, I closely considered the architec-tural precedents and believed that the better design would be to create the overlapping effect. Thus the likelihood I would be able to achieve my precedence would be much more probably than with the pinching shape. Additionally, I would combine the trian-gular faces in prototype 1 to create my interfering effect, which I attempted to establish in protoype 2. However unlike my ideation considerations, I had to scale increasingly to maintain the shape of my digitised model

Design considerations for further development

Module 2 Overall ReflectionTherefore we were able to experiment and develop openings and lighting effects to further develop our models and alter any conflicts that may occur. There was also an additional element of interaction that we had to consider between the digital to physical translation. In particularly, I took into consid-eration of the scale, as I worked on a relatively small scale, and this introduced complications in the material construction.

Module 3: Fabrication

“The digital age has radically reconfigured the relatiomnship between concep-tion and production, creating a direct link between what can be conceived and what can be constructed” (Kolarevic, B., 2003, pp. 31)

In my mindset there was a lot of resistance to diverting the crafting process through the digital process that have shaped how we construct not only our models, but how we construct our buildings and structures. By resisting the digital advancement, such as the cardcutter or lasercutter, I altered my design process and created great inefficencies such as uneven cutting. Thus, the final results were not as I wished.

Benjamin Gilbert during the lectures talked about how we should have a sound grasp of our scale and certainly learning form Module 2, I increased my scale to try and reduce any issues with constructions, while based on the partial full pro-totype there were some issues. In light of increasing the scale, constructing the lantern it was difficult with certain sections of the lantern where the likelihood of mistake were high. Paul and Gilbert talked about how we can lose the elememnt of interaction in the digital world as we cannot determine the forces at lay that may affect my model.

Ultimately before creating a full scale model, this process help a certain amount as it allowed me to interact with possible issues that I would have faced during the cardcutting and nesting process. I realised that Rhino did not translate curves as well as it should and required me to mirrror my unrolled faces to ensure that they reflected my original Rhino model. As such this demonstrates some of the downfalls of relying on digital technology.

Partial protyope

Aseembling storyboard - prototype

There a variety of elements that were lacking in the first full sized scale model that I failed to recognised. These included the fragile and openess of the lantern itself. These ultimately lead to other isssues with construction.

During this process I refered back to my precendence believing that the overlapping model and the triangular opening of my frist prototype would be suitable and alternated with tapered open-ings. This mean that there was large openings through the model.I also lacked te consideration of a circuitry lining itsellf and without proper concealment wiring would have been obvious.

However what I found I could take out of this model is the projec-tion of the lights and that they section where the were interlock-ing the sections together. However as shown in the second photo when I redeveloped a portion of the model, due to unrolling issues, the scale was altered and without a means of interlocking elements it protruded through the openings.

After the Module 3 presentation I reconsidered how I could incor-portate the missing elements and considered fixing any evident issues that arised during the fabrication process. Thus by lacking the trial and error process, my model lacked the development of design and ideas of the other models within the class.

Full scaled model #1

Resolving issues with full scale modelDuring my redeveloping stage between Module 3 and Module 4, I attempted to resovle some of the issue I had with the previous model. These included reducing opening and finding a way to include a concealed LED circuit and reducing glue stains.

By reducing redundant areas that will be covered by my body, I enclosed the un-derside of the lantern sections. Not only did this add structural integrity, but facilat-ed the means for me to conceal the circuit of my LED lightings, which I previously failed to do. While I did utilise bulldog clips to glue my tabs together, I found that as I was enclosing my lantern, it was ineffective and it required that

Other issues that unlike my first model where I did not encounter many issues with overlapping, there was constant issues with my redeveloped model. This can be contributed by altering the height of my triangular intrusion and the angle at which the increased at. While reducing the sharpness of the angle did allieviate some of the issues, I had to individually edit each of the overlaps to ensure the consistency of the model remained intact.

Digital technology has allowed us to create more complex surfaces and detailing to such an extent through its computation that when we create overly complicated we run into such issues, however it does

Individual tabbed strips which are glued together to form the

bottom half

Likewise with the upper half and middle section stick individual strips together before joing each other 3

sections together

Place the under side into the previ-ous section to create the overlapping effect and then enclosing the section with the top half.

“... architects seek to leverage digital design and manufacturing forperceptal and formal effect... method of making ultimately for the deisng aesthetic.” (Iwamoto L., 2009, pp. 4)

Unlike my previous model, which was more open, I made redundant parts of the section closed to nsure that it wasn’t as fragile as it usually would. Addi-tionally this allowed wiring to be hidden and more light to be concentrated towards one direction, rather than be dispersed into multiple due to the openings within the model.

Originally, due to a shortage of normal ivory card, they supplied me with a thinner, meaning that it was more likely to tear, however the actual ivory card added stiffness to the model. As such the material’s structure and strength has to be equally taken into account along with scale when form-ing model. This also reduce the amount of jamming that occured during the initial full scale modelling and had less folding and buckling.

Final model (unlit)

Overall there has been improvements in how the lighting effects are projected in my newer model in comparison to the previous model. This can be attributed to two things: stronger lightin circuit and creating a closed under surface.

Unlike the previous model which had openings all over, the newer model now has more of a projected lighting effect. Also the curvuture aids in creating an interfering effect that was not as evident in the first model. unlike the more direct lighting effect of the.

Coming back to my inspiration of the New Taipei Museum of Art. In this model I have managed to create that dispersed lighting effect where each interlocking segments diffuses light through the gap to highlight the individual segments and thus creates. However the way in which I place my lantern over the shoulder hides the intended effect if viewed from the front. In terms of achiev-eing what Heatherwick achieved with the ‘Roll-ing Bridge’ I think to a certain degree I have achieved the idea of a differing states through my final model.

Previous model Redesigned model

Final model (lit state)

Intefering/Layered lighting effect

Module 3 Overall Reflection“the method of making ultimately forms the design aesthetics”(Iwamoto, L., 2008, pp. 4)

There was a significant shift for me between design and fabrica-tion process, as I was meant with a myriad of issues that I had to overcome, while I was not able to fully solve each and every issue the development of my design I believe is evident as

The fabrication process has shown me that when I altered my constructing process it caused changes and fluctuations to dif-ferent areas of my lantern model. There needs to be interactions betwen the digital to physical model and multiple iterations are required before the final model is finally finished. The design pro-cess is never really over as there is a continuation of experimen-tation of the form to ensure that it is functioning.

Thus through this module has given me a wealth of experience to develop my model making skills by introducing the use of te-chonology such as the card cutter and CAD lke programs such as Rhino, as well as a wide variety of insight into possible techno-logical advancement

First protoype Final Model

Lighting projections

Models

Module 4 readings response & reflection

Over the duration of the coursework, I have realised the importance of digital modelling not only at present, but in the future. It felt counter intuitive to translate something over to the digital realm at first, when it could be made without the assistance of technology. However it allowed complex designs and other technological mediums that would have otherwise been non-existent 30-40 years ago. Early during my school education, when technology was not as prevalent as it is today, we modelled objects based on sketches and were translated from two dimensional planes.

However there has been a shifting paradigm and growing industry standard of 3D modelling, in particularly construction and architec-ture, we are slowly deviating away from two dimensional construction as highlighted in previous readings. The whole idea of 3D modelling is to ensure “standardized product quality, transforming consumption into a rational process that guaranteed uniformity across national markets” (Rifkin, 2011, pp.111), in particularly in the industry. In previous lectures as well as this week’s reading, there has been some empha-sis on the disconnect between digital Modelling and the potential risk of its translation into the physical realm, where there is a constant endeavouring to evaluate the physical forces that places itself on the model. Yet in the construction industry there is a huge drive towards BIM (building information modelling/management) that allows for the forces that exist in real life to be evaluated through the digital realm in real time. Just like we fabricated other lanterns, building materials can be pre-fabricated for construction, and then assembled on site, which is highly expensive initially, but is much more efficient time wise in terms of construction, meaning that the economic side.

As you can see there is alre ady a significant shift towards digital being as a driving force for advancement of our building. However as students using Rhino, while it might be restricted compared to other program, a few years ago, the programs which other students might have used would have just been the same. If this subject still remains in ten years’ time, possibly even as early as five years’ time, there would be a dramatic shift in how the subject is taught, just as how Rhino has entered this curricular, there may be potentially new technology and software.

Growing up using the internet from a consumer perspective, I have never had to utilise the technology or software, thus entering a more formal education, it came as a sudden reali-sation that the economic livelihood of individuals, both from a professional and consumer perspective, were so depend-ent on the trend for digital modelling. Thus there is a respect and appreciation for such technology to be able to build many of the objects and e built environment around us. It importance is not only impacting today’s standards, but also the future’s.

The reading talks about ‘craft’ as a “skill developed over time and in direct relationship to making and to working with materi-als” and in this subject we adapt both the work of the architect in a sense we created our own design, but also adapt ourselves as being the a builder and fabricator. Thus we cannot ignore one aspect, as it creates difficulty in our own process. I believe that during the process of designing and making the lantern I failed to recognise the issues of physically constructing the lantern.

I severely underestimated the risk of how Rhino could cause complications when it came to model making, for example the way in which the surfaces unrolled, I had to fold them a certain direction, which are not clear due to the way in which Rhino processes the unrolling of curved surfaces.

Secondly, my proficiency in craft was not at a required level and gluing the tab by hand proved difficult and created aes-thetic problems. Certainly there are areas which I could im-prove my design to ensure a flow and connect with one anoth-er. In particularly the development of my design from Module 2 to Module 3.

However, this subjects as provided me with a wealth of experi-ence as to how to tackle future design based subjects, given my lack of experience with design. In particularly I will find that model making will not

“... the risk associated with interpreting and imagining alternative outcomes that needs to be maintained to give craft a new role in mediating between humans and techonology”(Marble, S., 2008, pp. 43)

References

Poling, Clark (1987): Analytical Drawing In Kandisky’s Teaching at the Bauhaus Rizzoli, New York, pp. 107-122

Aranda, Lasch / Tooling (2006) . New York : Princeton Architectural Press, 2006

Ball, Philip (2012): Pattern Formation in Nature, AD: Architectural Design, Wiley, 82 (2), March, pp. 22-27

Furuto, A, 24 August 2011, Plataforma Networks, viewed 25 March 2013 <http://www.archdaily.com/162806/new-taipei-city-museum-of-art-competition-proposal-influx_studio/>

TED talks - Thomas Heatherwick - (16min) http://www.ted.com/talks/thomas_heatherwick.html

Scheurer, F. and Stehling, H. (2011): Lost in Parameter Space? IAD: Architectural Design, Wiley, 81 (4), July, pp. 70-79

Branko Kolarevic / Architecture in the Digital Age - Design and Manufacturing. Spon Press, London, c2003 Lisa Iwamoto / Digital fabrications: architectural and material techniques. New York : Princeton Architectural Press, c2009.

Jeremy Rifkin / The third Industrial Revolution. Palgrave Macmillan, C2011. pp107-126

Scott Marble / Imagining Risk, “Building the Future: Recasting Labor in Architecture”, ed. Philip Bernstein, Peggy Deamer. Princeton Architectural Press. c2008. pp 38-42