StudioAir2015Semester One

Fenly Jo 615460Journal

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Content

Part A: Conceptualisation

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Introduction

My name is Fenly Jo and I am a third year Bachelor of Environments student majoring in Architecture. I first developed an interest in architecture when I was doing a subject called Design Technology in high school back in Malaysia. For our final project, we

were required to design an object that could be used to store everyday things at home by using a software called ProDesktop to 3D print our design. Since then, along with my family’s property development background, I started to realize how design and architecture affect people’s lives- ranging from a storage equipment to residential buildings where people live in.

In my first year in Bachelor of Environments, I made the decision of not enrolling into Virtual Environments and it is one of the biggest regrets in my academic life. However, I enrolled into Visual Communications in my second year where I was taught the basic elements of 3D modelling using Rhino. Due to my limited skills in Rhino, I found it extremely frustrating to use when attempting to produce a digital model, especially at the end of the semester when we were all under pressure. During these scenarios, I resorted to SketchUp which I find relatively easy to use.

I am looking forward to this semester in Studio Air where I hope to take this opportunity to learn how to use Grasshopper to further develop my skills in the digital world. With the help of my tutor, I am certain I will be confident using Rhino and Grasshopper by the end of the semester.

A1Design Futuring

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A1.1: Precedent 1

Fly’s Eye DomeRichard Buckminster Fuller

Buckminster Fuller’s intention was to design a home that was efficient, in terms of its energy and material consumption. The result was a dome consisting of openings that serve as windows and doors, as well as a collector of wind and solar energy. A frame that collected

rainwater runoff was also part of the design. Although only a prototype was developed before he died, a replica of the dome was constructed by producing a 3D parametric model which was then cut by a CNC machine.

As the world is currently facing an energy-saving crisis, these portable homes could trigger other designs with similar concepts and promote a more environmentally way of living for the current generation. As Alastair Gordon claims, “the future officially arrived this week in Miami, and just in time.” This suggests that the replica was developed at a critical moment whereby sustainability is becoming an issue. Furthermore, Buckminster Fuller’s portable home design is a representation of a vision of the future.

During the development of the prototype in 1980, Buckminster Fuller did not have the technolo-gy required to build the final product. However, the rapid advancement of technology today has allowed us to achieve what Buckminster Fuller could not during his days. Therefore, there is a possibility that this concept can be easily mass produced in the near future, which would be more environmentally and financially more sustainable.

The Fly’s Eye Domes now serves as a pedestrian entryway to an underground carpark at Design District in Miami. As pedestrians walk through the dome, they do not interpret the dome as a portable home, but they value it as a piece of art which they are able to interact with visually and physicially. Although the purpose of the dome has shifted, the initial concept is key to futuring.

“There is no energy crisis, only a crisis of ignorance.” - Richard Buckminster Fuller

Fig 1. Souce: http://www.hauteresidence.com/richard-buckminster-fuller-iconic-flys-eye-dome/

Fig 2. Souce: http://www.hauteresidence.com/richard-buckminster-fuller-iconic-flys-eye-dome/

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A1.2: Precedent 2

2002 Serpentine GalleryToyo Ito/Balmond Studio

Fig 4: Interior of pavilionSource: http://www.archdaily.com/344319/serpentine-gallery-pavilion-

2002-toyo-ito-cecil-balmond-arup/

Fig 3: Exterior of pavilionSource: http://www.archdaily.com/344319/serpen-

tine-gallery-pavilion-2002-toyo-ito-cecil-balmond-arup/

Toyo Ito and Cecil Balmond, who is a structural engineer, were chosen to design the Ser-pentine Gallery Pavilion in 2002. The end product of their collaboration is an impressive lightweight structure, which represents Ito’s obsession with lightness and transparency. It

can be seen as a solid white box, but at the same time a transparent white box which allows plenty of natural sunlight in. Many may think the form was determined by random lines intersecting one another, however, it was Balmond’s algorithm that produced the seemingly chaotic form. It result-ed in a balance between light and solid within the space.

Through the use of parametric design, Toyo Ito and Cecil Balmond have developed a white box into a series of intersecting lines with the gaps filled with glass and aluminium panels to block and to allow sunlight to penetrate into the interior space. The practicality of the structure is also im-portant to highlight because it can be deconstructed and rebuilt somewhere else once its time at the Gallery ends. Ultimately, the building serves as an exploration of new architectural concepts, as most of Toyo Ito’s works do.

Fig 5Source: http://www.archdaily.com/344319/serpentine-gallery-pavilion-2002-toyo-ito-cecil-balmond-arup/