AIR YING CHEN

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ABOUT ME

I am Ying CHEN, a third-year architecture major at Univer-sity of Melbourne. I come from the largest and rapidly de-veloping country in the world- China. I grow up in the back-ground that urbanization seems like be completed as if blink. The architecture in China has evolved dramatically in these years, which raises my interest.

Through the study of virtual environment, earth studio as well as water studio, I gain the technology to use the software, such as rhino, sketch up and Auto CAD, to complete my de-sign in digital way.

Introduction

CONTENTS

PART AA.1 DESIGN FUTUREA.2 DESIGN COMPUTATION A.3 COMPOSITION/ GENERATIONA.4 CONCLUSIONA.5 LEARNING OUTCOMESA.6 APPENDIX - ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES5

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A.1DESIGN FUTURE

Our world is currently expe-rienced a damage which would impact the future of the planet and the life on it, including cli-mate change, ecological systems.1 Facing this situation, the design of how future would be is vital.

The future is depended on either an unexpected cataclysmic event or the way we choose to live.2 As for the design, it refers that the action to shape the form, opera-tion, appearance and perceptions of the material world we occupy

by designer and designed objects, images, systems and things.3 Since we have created so much ecological damages, design is the way to extend the future of our world.

Furthermore, the one of the key issues about the relation between creation and destruction is fo-cused on the renewable resource.4 While the media currently concerned about the damage, such as change of the tempera-ture, melting of polar ice shelves and weather pattern, the actual

damages, including its impact to biodiversity, human settlement pattern, agriculture and son on, are ignored.5

As the agenda of LAGI, many architects pay attention on advancing the successful imple-mentation of sustainable design solutions by integrating art and interdisciplinary creative process-es into the conception of renew-able energy within architecture discourse.6

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A.1.1 Precedent Project

TREEYijie Dang, Tom TangNew York City, USA

The past competition entry of Tree defi ne the agenda of Fresh Kill Park program is that restor-ing the nature by manmade interention with the inspiration of three as a symbol of renewal and the interconnectedness of all things. It not sucessfully expand the future possibility towards sustainability but also response to the site, including its current situation, historical elements and demand of inhabitants.

Considering the current soil situation of the site is not deep enough to support large roots of the trees with a wide canopy, they creat an articfi cal tree with recycled industral balloons and PVC pipes, whose canopy can be increased by the sun, to satisfy the need of shadowing that the inhabitants expected and refer to the history of the site as landfi ll cap.

Tree brings a brand new ap-proach to future. Th e electricty energy will be collected while the balloon sway and the PVCs branch bending with kinetic generators, piezoelectric genera-tors and LEDs. At night, the bal-loon reduce its size and glow as a sculptual. In this way, it expands the a new method to achieve energy effi ciency in term of both practical and experienced factors.

FIGURE.1 Diagram of Principle of Tree FIGURE.3 Day Perspective of Tree2

FIGURE.2 Day Perspective of Tree

FIGURE.3 Day Perspective of Tree3

A.1.1Precendent Projects

RMIT DESIGN HUB -- PhotovoltaicsSean GodsellRMIT University, Melbourne, Australia, 2012

FIGURE.5 Elevation of RMIT Design Hub

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It is hard to miss the building that located at the corner of Melbourne city as its impressed façade. This new RMIT design hub is designed to provide accommodation various design research and post-graduate education within the warehouse structure.

This building adopts warehouse structure to allow more flexibility and possibility to the space usage according to different situation need. This means its future function areas division does not tie with the current design plan.

The design hub has lots of environmentally sustain-able design features and has achieved a 5-star Green Star Education Rating in environmentally sustain-able design. It involves in strategies of water, waste and recycling management.

Nevertheless, the focal point is the outer skin of the

building, which adopt the automated shading that includes photovoltaic cell, evaporative cooling and fresh air. Especially, the photovoltaic effect can turn the soloar radiation energy into current electricty. This technology enhances the performance of this hub in designing future. This means in this way, the internal air quality and the energy running cost is reduced, which is meet the requirement of future design – sustainability.

Furthermore, the photovoltaic cells of this hub is designed with the capacity to be upgraded solar energy evolves by replacing photovoltaic panel as research, in order to achieve the aim that generate enough electricity to run the whole building. Al-though, its conversion effieciency is still limited by technology today, but the design has the potential to apply further advanced technologies to improve the efficiency in the future.

FIGURE.5 Design Details of Design Hub (Photovoltaics)

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REFERENCE (A.1)

1 Fry, Tony (2008). Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg), pp. 1–16.

2 Fry, Tony (2008). Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg), pp. 1–16.

3 Ferry, Robert & Elizabeth Monoian, ‘Design Guidelines’, Land Art Generator Initiative, Copenhagen, 2014. pp 1 – 10.

4 Fry, Tony (2008). Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg), pp. 1–16.

5 Fry, Tony (2008). Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg), pp. 1–16.

6 Review: Land Art Generator Initiative Competition Entries, 2012

IMAGEFIGURE.1-3: TREE, Yijie Dang, Tom Tang, New York City, USA, Retrive from http://landartgenerator.org/LAGI-2012/YJBLLJSL/.

FIGURE.4 & 5: RMIT DESIGN HUB,Sean Godsell, RMIT University, Melbourne, Australia, 2012, retrive from http://www.designhub.rmit.edu.au.

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A.2 DESIGN COMPUTATION

Computation is always con-fused with computerization, which means using the comput-ers to enter, process, or store entities or processes that are already conceptualized in design-ers’ mind in a computer system the architecture.1 In these days, it has become a dominant mode of utilizing computers in ar-chitecture. For example, many architects adopt virtual drafting board in computer as it is easier to edit, copy and increase the

precision of drawings. However, computation acts more like a tool to determine some properties by mathematical or logical methods with calculating process.2

As the notions of design methods in architecture would be changed with advanced technology of its age, in this Information Age, the trendy that design process is not detached from computation has become irreversible. This is because that computation is not

only involves the digitization of entities or processes that already defined in architect’s mind, but also provide more possibilities and opportunities to extend the designers’ abilities to deal with highly complex situations dur-ing the computational process, as the nature of computer is good at dealing with analysis of com-plexity unambiguously, which is a exploration of indeterminate, vague, unclear, and often ill-de-fined processes.3

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A.2Precendent Projects

ICD | ITKE Research Pavilion ICD / ITKE University of StuttgartStuttgart, Germany, 2011

This is a project designed by Institute for Computational Design (ICD) and the Institute of Building Structures and Struc-tural Design (ITKE), together with students at the University of

Stuttgart to integrate the biologi-cal principles of the sea urchin’s plate skeleton morphology into architecture through various methods of computation. Hence, the possibility of effectively

extending the recognized bionic principles and related perfor-mance to a range of different geometries is maximized, due to the process of computation.

FIGURE.1 Perspective of ICD | ITKE Research Pavilion

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As the focus of this project is the geometric arrange-ment of sand dollar’s plates and their joining system, the computational design pro-cess is around this theme. Th e characters of sand dollar morphology force the design of pavilion meet the funda-mental properties, such as Heterogeneity, Anisotropy and Hierarchy.

A closed, digital information loop between the project’s model, fi nite element simula-tions and computer numeric machine control is a basic requirement for designing, developing and realizing of the complex morphology. As form fi nding and structural design are closely inter-linked, it becomes an ap-proach to turn the complex geometry into a fi nite ele-ment program for analyzing and modifying the critical points of the model via the optimized data exchange scheme. On the other hand,

the designers used the com-putation to test glued and bolted joints experimentally and included the results in the structural calculations at the same time.

Th e production of the plates and fi nger joints of each cell were operated university’s robotic fabrication system. Th e architects set custom program to provide the basis for the automatic generation of the machine code (NC-Code) for controlling an industrial seven-axis robot in the computer model. Th is means through this technol-ogy, economical production of thousands of geometrical-ly diff erent components and fi nger joints freely arranged in space can be made. Th en the participants can combine these prefabricated module cells, which were joined to-gether following the robotic production, into the fi nal construction work.

FIGURE.2 Perspective of Pavilion

FIGURE.3 Utilization Diagram

FIGURE.4 Fabrication Data Model

FIGURE.5 Geometric Constraints of Toolpath Generation9

A.2Precendent Project

As Autumn Leaves Laboratory for Computational Design (LCD)Beijing, China, 2013

“As Autumn Leaves” is a spa-tial installation located in a his-toric Hutong in Beijing, which is designed and built by students of the Laboratory for Computa-tional Design. This project re-flects the ephemerality of nature through investigating the leaves falling in autumn.

In order to achieve this agenda to show the pattern and geometries of leaves falling, the designers adopt the computational pro-cess to explore the variation and adaptability within the system of geometric growth patterns and geometries related to natural log-ics and materials.

The students of LCD used para-metric design tool not only for

defining systemic and formal languages but also cataloging and locating components for ease of assembly. They adopted laser cutting technology to fab-ricate individual acrylic compo-nents digitally, pre-assembled them into ‘families’, and then ag-gregated the pieces on site.

As the structural integrity can be solidified via tensioning of the acrylic ‘Leaves’, which refers to bending the components inher-ent to the material, the LCD set up a modeling program based physics to generate and evaluate wind and gravitational forces in the installations. By hybridiz-ing material and spatial research with advanced structural calcu-lations AAL float above, around,

and through existing spaces.Tensioning of the acrylic ‘Leaves’ through bending, inherent to the material, solidified structural integrity. Designers used phys-ics based modeling programs to generate and evaluate wind and gravitational forces in their installations. Through the com-putational design process, the designers float above, around, and through existing spaces as they hybridized material and re-searched spatial with advanced structural calculations.

FIGURE.6 Detail of the Facade

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FIGURE.7 Perspective of As Autumn LeavesFIGURE.8 Differentiation FIGURE.9 Component Logic

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REFERENCE (A.2)

1 Oxman, Rivka and Robert Oxman, eds (2014). Theories of the Digital in Architecture (London; New York: Routledge), pp. 1–10.

2 Kalay, Yehuda E. (2004). Architecture’s New Media: Principles, Theories, and Methods of Computer-Aided Design (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press), pp. 5-25.

3 Kalay, Yehuda E. (2004). Architecture’s New Media: Principles, Theories, and Methods of Computer-Aided Design (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press), pp. 5-25.Fry, Tony (2008). Design Futuring: Sustainability, Ethics and New Practice (Oxford: Berg), pp. 1–16.

ICD | ITKE Research Pavilion , ICD / ITKE University of Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany, 2011. Retrived from http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=6553.

As Autumn Leaves, Laboratory for Computational Design (LCD), Beijing, China, 2013. Retrived from http://www.archdaily.com/451572/lcd-exhibits-as-autumn-leaves-at-beijing-s-2013-design-week/.

IMAGE

FIGURE. 1-5: ICD | ITKE Research Pavilion , ICD / ITKE University of Stuttgart, Stuttgart, Germany, 2011. Retrived from http://icd.uni-stuttgart.de/?p=6553.

FIGURE. 6- 9: As Autumn Leaves, Laboratory for Computational Design (LCD), Beijing, China, 2013. Retrived from http://www.archdaily.com/451572/lcd-exhibits-as-autumn-leaves-at-beijing-s-2013-design-week/.

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A.3COMPOSITION/ GENERATION

An algorithm refers to an unam-biguous, precise, list of simple operations applied mechanically and systematically to a set of tokens or objects.1 This means the designers can set a parametric system to input the initial data state and then gain the final state as output through the computa-tional operation. Based on this theory, algorithmic thinking means using the algorithm meth-od to explore a design for better understanding and description, more modified options, as well as further design potentials.2

As a result, the Architecture is

currently experiencing a shift from the drawing to the algo-rithm as the method of capturing and communicating designs.3 The parametric modeling technolo-gies allow designers to explore designs and simulate perfor-mance, in term of both physical and experiential.4 This means the ability of architects to construct complex models of buildings and gain performance feedback about these models is enhanced with the algorithm and parametric. However, this computational method not only contributes to the complexity of building a proj-ect, but also multitude of param-

eters instrument of a building’s formation.5

Nevertheless, there is a short-coming that the scripting of the design would degenerate to an isolated craft instead of integra-tion, if advantaged computational skills are allowed to obscure and diverts from the real design ob-jectives.6 Furthermore, although the computation can simulate the performance of the design, usually the real practical perfor-mance of the design is involve the uncertain elements, like the movement of the people and the structure among them.

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A.3.1Precendent Projects

LIGHT FOREST Architectural Association (AA) DLAB London / Hooke Park, England, 2013

FIGURE.1 Perspective of Light Forest

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As Peters mentioned only if architects have a sufficient under-standing of algorithmic concepts and admit the digital is not an alien within architectural dis-course, the computation can be-come a true method of design for architecture. In order to achieve this aim, AA DLAB Visiting School had a prototype that in-volve computation process, such as integration of algorithmic and generative design methodologies and digital fabrication tools, in AA London and Hooke Park. DLAB first set up the agenda that creating a Light Forest grows and illuminates its surround-ings, which has communication between itself and the people around it, on the ground or on the wall. With this agenda, the designers investigated natural growth processes of the light in relation to innovative concepts of architectural tectonics and fab-rication. Then, the generated de-

sign idea is carrying through the whole design process, as there is a tied interaction among the con-cepts of emergence, differentia-tion as well as complexity. In this way, it provides an opportunity to consider the design as full-scale working prototypes. For example, the designers discovered means of how to integrate the diffusion of light with other architectural parameters that are essential in generating diverse spatial quali-ties through the design process.

The designers also applied the algorithmic thinking to the design. They explored the design by setting up the algorithmic computational system, which reflected the characteristics of self-organization within a range of scales in nature. In the context of DLAB’s design task, diffu-sion elements have become the lower level components inscribed with information relating to their physical constraints, form,

reaction to external stimuli, and interaction with one another. Stu-dents have observed the behavior of the generative systems with the manipulation of input parameters and the performance of the re-sulting simulations. The compu-tational toolset of the workshop has been Processing, Grasshop-per and Arduino.

Since the designers aimed to transform static built models to animated kinetic prototypes for showing a more hierarchi-cal design arrangement, they have done the prototype test in a digital way. There is no doubt that it enhances the capacity to test more possibilities and more complex prototypes. However, as this project, the mode of the light involves not only direct interac-tion of the people around it and the physical structural, but also the indirect interaction among these people through the physical structure.

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A.3.2Precendent Projects

Arum Zaha Hadid ArchitectsVenice Biennale, 2012

Arum is a project that Zaha Hadid Architects designed for the Venice Biennale 2012 to respond to its theme “ Common Ground” which means the cur-rent architectural culture is relied on a rich historical continuity of diverse ideas instead of some singular talents. As for Arum, it is designed to pay the respect to the Frei Otto, who made a great con-tribution in paving the way for material-structural form-finding processes. The designers applied computation to this project with algometric thinking, parametric modeling as well scripting cul-ture.

The architects realized once they

put more design research and work evolved on the basis of the algorithmic form generation, the more appreciation for the previ-ous contribution of architectural pioneers like Frei Otto they gain. Hence, they expanded scripting culture of Frei Otto’s method via include its environmental as well as structural logics unambigu-ously and precisely. In this way, they moved Frei’s theory from material to computational simu-lations. Then the designers can gain further understanding about richness, organic coherence and fluidity of the forms and spaces that they desire could emerge rationally from an intricate bal-ance of forces that are handled by computation.

Furthermore, the designers ad-opted the algorithmic thinking to achieve the shift from composi-tion to generation, as they ex-plored shell structure and tensile structures with the idea that gen-erating intensive and extensive qualities and establishing intri-cate relationships within archi-tectural systems and subsystems in order to form complex and coherent spatial arrangements.

In addition, the designers applied a lot of technologies about Para-metric Semiology and Parametri-cism to analysis and model the complex design. This makes it possible to build such complex prototype design in real.

FIGURE.2 Photo of Arum

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FIGURE.2 Photo of Arum

FIGURE.3 Render of Arum

FIGURE.4 Photo of Arum17

REFERENCE (A.3)

1 Definition of ‘Algorithm’ in Wilson, Robert A. and Frank C. Keil, eds (1999). The MIT Encyclopedia of the Cognitive Sciences (London: MIT Press), pp. 11, 12

2 Peters, Brady. (2013) ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, Architectural Design, 83, 2, pp. 08-15

3 Peters, Brady. (2013) ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, Architectural Design, 83, 2, pp. 08-15.

4 Peters, Brady. (2013) ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, Architectural Design, 83, 2, pp. 08-15

5 Definition of ‘Algorithm’ in Wilson, Robert A. and Frank C. Keil, eds (1999). The MIT Encyclopedia of the Cognitive Sciences (London: MIT Press), pp. 11, 12

6 Peters, Brady. (2013) ‘Computation Works: The Building of Algorithmic Thought’, Architectural Design, 83, 2, pp. 08-15

LIGHT FOREST, Architectural Association (AA) DLAB, London / Hooke Park, England, 2013. Retrived from http://www.archdaily.com/442546/aa-dlab-2013-light-forest/.

Arum, Zaha Hadid Architects, Venice Biennale, 2012. Retrived from http://www.zaha-hadid.com/2012/08/16/venice-architecture-biennale-common-ground/.

IMAGE

FIGURE. 1: LIGHT FOREST, Architectural Association (AA) DLAB, London / Hooke Park, England, 2013. Retrived from http://www.archdaily.com/442546/aa-dlab-2013-light-forest/.

FIGURE. 2- 4: Arum, Zaha Hadid Architects, Venice Biennale, 2012. Retrived from http://www.zaha-had-id.com/2012/08/16/venice-architecture-biennale-common-ground/.

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A.4CONCULSION

As the sustainability has a great impact on the future of our world, renewable energy has become important issue within architectural discourse with advanced technologies during the design and construction process.

Computation as a method to pro-duce the much more complex de-sign and provide more opportu-nity to solve the design problem

through parametric design pro-cess. It involves the exploration of indeterminate, vague, unclear, and often ill-defined processes, rather than only digitalization the design that preformed in design-ers’ mind.

However, there is a shortcoming that the scripting of the design would degenerate to an isolated craft instead of integration, if ad-

vantaged computational skills are allowed to obscure and diverts from the real design objectives. In addition, although the algo-metric design can simulate the performance of the design both experiential and practical, there are still some uncertain factors would influenced the design per-formance result.

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A.5LEARNING OUTCOMES

Through last few weeks study, I learnt that parametric design is important in the architectural designing for better future. Based on the principle and the nature of the computation, more basic researches we do and algorithm in to computational system as

input, more outputs, which refer to the possibilities about the solution of the complex problems and accuracy about the perfor-mance evaluation, we would gain. Hence, in the further study, we should extend the initial data with this thinking. Moreover, I

also gain a few basic technolo-gies to do the parametric design in rhino with grasshopper tool, which would be necessary for the later designing process.

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A.6APPENDIX - ALGORITHMIC SKETCHES

Th ese weeks algorithmic tasks give me the basic knowlege to algorthmic some spatial form and off er me opportunity to practice these skill. Th rough thses algor-thim, the design can be clear descripted.

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