Workshop: Design Paramétrico como Estratégia Avançada de Projeto - UP

Registrations are now open for the workshop: Design Paramétrico como Estratégia Avançada de Projeto that I will teach, with the coordination of Prof. Gisele Pinna, from August, 31^st to September, 4^th, 2009 at Universidade Positivo, Curitiba, Brazil.

The Parametric Design strategy will be based on the use of the software Grasshopper, the new generative modeling environment for Rhino that is revolutionizing the world of architecture and design.

Information:

designparametrico-up.blogspot.com (in Portuguese and Spanish)

Registration:

www.up.edu.br (in Portuguese)

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Já estão abertas as inscrições para o workshop Design Paramétrico como Estratégia Avançada de Projeto que vou ministrar, com a coordenação da Profa. Gisele Pinna, de 31 de agosto a 4 de setembro de 2009 na Universidade Positivo, Curitiba, PR, Brasil.

A estratégia de Design Paramétrico estará baseada no uso do software Grasshopper, o novo entorno de modelagem generativa para Rhino que está revolucionando o mundo da arquitetura e o design.

Informação:

designparametrico-up.blogspot.com

Inscrições:

www.up.edu.br

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Ya están abiertas las inscripciones para el taller Diseño Paramétrico como Estrategia Avanzada de Proyectos que voy a impartir, con la coordinación de la Prof. Gisele Pinna, del 31 de agosto al 4 de septiembre de 2009 en la Universidade Positivo, Curitiba, Brasil.

La estrategia de Diseño Paramétrico estará basada en el uso del software Grasshopper, el nuevo entorno de modelado generativo para Rhino que está revolucionando el mundo de la arquitectura y el diseño.

Información:

designparametrico-up.blogspot.com

Inscripciones:

www.up.edu.br (en portugués)

Phyllotaxis Tower

This is an idea for a skyscraper based on spiral phyllotaxis, like the sunflower system, that exhibits spiral pods always in Fibonacci numbers.

Monocoque from single list definitions

This is a simple example of a monocoque generated from points on a surface. With just a few components, sixteen points are inputted to draw an interpolated curve on the surface. This was done before the implementation of data-trees in Grasshopper, so, from a single list of points a zigzag curve is drawn. In order to have two directions to work structurally, the sixteen points are inputted once again, resembling the other order needed.

In general, single list have been seen as a limitation when working with surface sub-parameters, but in this case I was taking advantage of them to get this aesthetic output.

Honeycomb script published in aU

On April, 2009, in number 181 of Brazilian aU Magazine, Affonso Orciuoli published the article: TI aplicada à arquitetura: o antes e o depois (IT applied in architecture: before and after), in which he exposes the uses of scripting, parametric modeling and digital fabrication in architecture. He mentions some experiences like our Tooling workshop or the Radiolarian Walls project and shows one of my experiments: the Honeycomb script. This is a simplification of Andrew Kudless’ script that I’ve originally prepared for teaching RhinoScript. Here is shown in a mid stage. Recent versions have improved efficiency making a more elegant code.

Thanks to Affonso for inviting me to collaborate in his article.

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Em abril de 2009, no numero 181 da brasileira Revista aU, Affonso Orciuoli publicou o artigo: TI aplicada à arquitetura: o antes e o depois, no cual ele expõe os usos do Scripting, a modelagem paramétrica e a fabricação digital na arquitetura. Ele menciona algumas experiencias como o nosso Tooling workshop ou o projeto das paredes radiolárias e mostra um dos meus experimentos: o script do Honeycomb. Este é uma simplificação do script do Andrew Kudless, que preparei originalmente para dar aula de RhinoScript. Aqui mostra-se numa etapa média. Versões recentes têm uma eficiência melhorada, providenciando um código mais elegante.

Obrigado ao Affonso por invitar-me a colaborar no seu artigo.

Inside Staircase example

One of the most known examples David Rutten was used to show when was presenting Grasshopper was the Staircase example, because is relatively simple to assemble, it's amazing to see the fast-and-easy interactive feedback of parameter changes and, at the end, it's a parametric architectural element. But when teaching Grasshopper, I rather to follow the same constructive approach to generative design —from points, to curves to surfaces— that I've used in RhinoScript, and the Staircase is a good example to introduce Orientation. Therefore, I use it as a fourth or fifth example.

And for not repeating the exact definition that everyone can find on Internet, here is another example (with more components, but still simple), in which four points are inputted to construct a control point Nurbs curve of 2^nd degree (instead of an interpolated curve), not used as axial but as an external border generative curve, so that the location of input points can also respond to external parameters like surrounding spaces of a building.

Update 2018-02-13:

As requested by readers, I've updated the definition and you can download it: InsideStaircase-180213.gh (26.5 KB).
Runs in Grasshopper 0.9.0076 (and above, if developers keep backwards compatibility).

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

'Ocurt' assignments: undergraduate advice at ESARQ

During academic year 2008-2009, Professor Antonio Sanmartín and T.A. Marc Camallonga invited me to do an advice in their last year Architectural Projects class, in the undergraduate program at ESARQ – UIC.

Although they don’t consider themselves up to date in matters of digital technologies in architecture, they have a very interesting approach to encourage students to design algorithmically and, by doing so, evolving beyond XX^th century. They begin by studying parameters to create variables from site and context, and also from a very different income: literature. They chose a novel and distributed it, one chapter per student, to generate a diagram from it (in the very Eisenman style!).

My contribution began doing a short lecture on algorithmic design and giving what they called the ‘Ocurt’ assignment: to take the diagram and site variables and develop a complex surface out of them by an algorithmic strategy. Remembering Karl Chu’s reconsideration of Eisenman, I taught them a strategy of synthesizing data and mapping it on a base shape, based on Chu’s morphogenetic approach that he teaches in the Master by an analogic algorithmic strategy (without programming).

In a more advanced stage, I was called for a second 'Ocurt' assignment: a digital fabrication plan. After suggesting some reference reading on the subject, a CAD/CAM strategy was applied to the developed architectural element, so that it could be fabricated in the CNC machine of the school. Some cases required basic training in rationalization of complex surfaces with PanelingTools.

The image shows some student projects at different stages. Photos by Marc Camallonga.

Thanks to Alberto T. Estévez for recommending me to Antonio Sanmartín for this class.