PYTHON24HRS : Computational Design: BRIDGE+

Monday, May 6, 2013

Computational Design: BRIDGE+

BRIDGE+

BRIDGE+ is an application of digital computational tools to urban and architectural design.

The project has been originally conceived as a design proposal for the Europan 11 Competition and then developed as a Master Thesis at the AA EmTech (Emergent Technologies and Design Programme, Architectural Association School of Architecture, London, 2011) by Pierluigi D’Acunto, Norman Hack and Camila Rock de Luigi. BRIDGE+ answers the question of how an infrastructure can act as a seed for new urban development in the suggested sites of Skien and Porsgrunn, located in the Grenland District (Norway). In particular, the project proposes a series of inhabitable pedestrian footbridges to be placed along the river that flow through the Grenland District. In addition, the bridges are intended to be directly connected to the public transport network.

Within the framework of Evolutionary Computation, a set of four genetic algorithms (EVO+00, EVO+01, EVO+02, EVO+03) has been developed as the main generative tool of BRIDGE+. The algorithms work in a hierarchical way. Starting from the urban scale and moving to the architectural scale and eventually to the material system, the output of each of them represents the input for the next one. The algorithms are based on customized code written in Python and they take advantage of the 3D digital design platform McNeel Rhinoceros and Grasshopper.

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Python Scripting for Rhino Workshop 24h - Barcelona 15/17 May

Computational design, or more specifically the use of digital generative and evaluative tools for architectural design, has been heralded as the new paradigm in architecture for the last decade. Digital design techniques coupled with rapid prototyping have permeated architectural education and practice at all levels. But, besides the endless rhetoric and baseless forms, what can these methods actually contribute to the field? What is the scope of their use?

This workshop seeks to answer these questions by investigating surfaces, surface mathematics and manipulations, and using this investigation to introduce students to the issues of design and fabrication of artifacts.

The workshop will thus introduce participants to the basic concepts for design utilizing scripting techniques, through the exploration of the Python language for Rhinoceros.
Together with the study of syntax, data types and scripting techniques the focus will be put on the understanding of the digital tools in relation with the common practice and the ways to approach problems a designer might encounter while using them.

PEOPLE

MARINA KONSTANTATOU (University College London)
Marina completed her M.Sc. in Applied Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the National university of Athens in 2011, specialized in mathematical analysis and mathematics for computation. M.Sc in Emergent Architecture and Design at the Architectural Association London where she held the Super-Surface Fabrication workshop. She is now interested in the application of abstract mathematics in the architectural realm and self-assembling systems.

PIERLUIGI D'ACUNTO (ETH Zurich)
Pierluigi received his Diploma in Architecture and Civil Engineering with Honours from the University of Pisa (Italy) and a Master of Architecture with Distinction from the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London (UK).   Since 2006, he has been gaining professional experience as an Architect and an Engineer in private practices in Italy and Japan. He has been awarded in several national and international architectural competitions. He is currently a Research Assistant at the Chair of Structural Design at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zurich. His research is primarily focused on exploring the convergence of Architecture and Engineering within the domain of Emergence.

VINCENZO REALE (Zaha Hadid Architects + Architectural Association London)
Vincenzo (Master Course in Building Engineering and Architecture - Bologna 2010, MSc Architectural Association - London 2012, EU licensed engineer since 2011) places itself in the area where architecture meets and overlaps multiple, different, fields, from design to engineering, from biology to informatics, from theater and video-performance to building workshops.Passionate about technology he tried to widen his knowledge of digital tools, especially in connection with parametric and generative techniques for architecture.He has previously worked, among others, for Tom Wiscombe Emergent Architecture in Los Angeles, and has taught scripting workshops at AA (where is currently employed as tutor at the Landscape and Urbanism master program). Currently works for Zaha Hadid Architects in London.09.12 - present _ Tutor at Landscape And Urbanism Mastercourse at Architectural Association London

GIANCARLO TORPIANO (Architectural Association London)
Completed Bachelor’s degree in Architecture and Structural Engineering at the University of Malta, before moving to London to undertake an M.Arch in Emergent Design at the Architectural Association. His main interests are algorithmic design focussed on emergent behaviours, natural structures, structural engineering and computational techniques. He has led workshops on digital architecture in Malta and at the Architectural Association.