In this seminar, students will explore various generative systems that underlie natural structures, employing advanced digital design tools. We will investigate diverse aspects such as tissues, shell structures, modular systems, growth simulation, adaptive skins, and optimization workflows.
How can we efficiently generate bio-inspired structures? This question lies at the heart of our exploration. Nature has perfected the art of efficiency in its structures, leveraging evolved ingenuity of form to make extraordinarily efficient use of materials. Through mechanisms like folding, vaulting, ribs, and inflation, natural systems have crafted remarkably efficient forms. Nature’s myriad examples serve as a profound source of inspiration for structures that could surpass the efficiency of conventional architectural designs (as discussed in “Biomimicry in Architecture” by Michael Pawlyn).
But why does nature behave this way? It’s the result of the many pressures of survival, from seeking sustenance and thermoregulation to mating and evading predation.
Course Content
Throughout architectural history, nature has been a rich source of inspiration for building forms and decorative elements. However, in this seminar, we delve beyond aesthetics. Biomimicry is about functional solutions, not merely aesthetics.
In this seminar, we will explore various generative systems that underlie natural structures, employing advanced digital design tools. Topics include the history of biomimicry in architecture and related terms like biophilia, bio-utilization, and synthetic biology. We will investigate diverse aspects such as tissues, shell structures, modular systems, growth simulation, adaptive skins, and optimization workflows.
By the end of this course, students will:
GRASSHOPPER3D, RHINOCEROS 3D, HOUDINI, KANGAROO, BIOMORPHER, WASP, HOUGH, HUMAN, BIO-INSPIRED, EFFICIENCY, ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL, ADAPTATION, SKELETONS
Concept The Museum of Extinction (MoE) is a speculative museum dedicated to raising awareness of species extinction and broader global trends related to biodiversity lose. Located in Naples, Italy this museum will offer a contemplative and exploratory space. Visitors will engage with land, sky, and water through architectural programming while the formal narrative will treat … Read more
DESIGN CONCEPT experiencing nature with minimizing the effect on the context. Both the path and the Façade are created through agent-based form finding methods to avoid collisions with the context (Trees, Terrain, water) through carving the design in between those elements Early explorations and lessons from failures , Using ( Quelea Plugin ) for better … Read more
An (a)live museum as a stage of the wildlife-scene Design Concept – 3D Tiling Human exploit their home planet leaving less space for fauna and flora. Into the wild, a museum dedicated to the marvels of wilderness is both a shelter and a platform of experience. Volcanic fertile ground gives birth to a fluid body. … Read more
Design concept and system Our topic was mathematical surfaces, so we started our project off that. We wanted to achieve a fluid and dynamic form, so we decided to combine strange attractors as a base for the building and a vector field as a facade system. Early explorations – Strange Attractors For the building form, … Read more
Concept – Raised Voxelization The idea for this Extinction Museum is to offer a journey through nature, elevated and disconnected from the ground. The elevated and voxelated structure represents the digitalization of our current world, increasingly divorced from nature. The journey is framed to bring attention to this phenomenon by populating indoor spaces with digital … Read more
Nestled within the crater of Agnano in Naples, Italy, this museum lies at the base of a dormant volcano. Spanning multiple floors, the collection unfolds the captivating narrative of the native species of Naples. Our project germinates from three distinct mathematical equations: A cartesian equation that produces a Clebsch diagonal cubic surface, a parametric equation … Read more
Our concept seeks to guide people through a museum of extinctions, from ancient archaea, through the dinosaurs to the devastation of the anthropocene. Mimicking a cave, the journey elicits mythic tales of travelling to the underworld. A glass walkway guides visitors over the exhibits of fossils and taxidermied specimens. Angular forms reflect the violence of … Read more
