Building Simplexity Architecture Challenge

Sustainable Wood-based Construction

The ‘Digital Revolution’ is over: being ‘digital’ today is noticed only by its absence, not its presence.
As architecture enters this ‘Post-Digital’ era, the focus shifts on digital application and its integration in a practice that transcends earlier exclusively screen-based mediation, locating ambitions back into the physical world of praxis, only now informed by decades of working with computers. Within this framework, the aim of the avant-garde continues to identify radically different and previously inaccessible design solution spaces that now benefit fully from this newly gained resource of computation. These solutions can be characterized by novel spatial qualities and form, augmented performance, increased socio-cultural relevance, alternative production methodologies, etc.

As part of this post-digital agenda, ‘Building Simplexity’ seeks to overcome the construction complexities commonly associated with digital design through the simplest of means, using digital design tools as weapons of choice to root the work back in human-centered construction reality. Its aim is to increase impact by targeting applicability not only in contexts of greater means but also in developing construction environments where resources are scarce. While procedural control of the design and production process is maintained throughout, dependency on exclusive modes of computer-controlled production is avoided. As computational power has become available everywhere at virtually zero cost, the question becomes to meaningfully incorporate it in design and building processes in areas of the highest growth and greatest need.

Requirements: Good knowledge of Rhino, Grasshoppers plugin

The program will be offered on:

In partnership with:

 

Collaborator 1: Attken Do it Center
is a place where creators envision their artistry and craftsmanship potential in every tool they see. With great-value products, Attken Do it Center carries the necessary tools to implement its mission of pushing Saudi customers to Do it Themselves! Whether it was planting their home garden, building a table, painting a room, grilling a juicy steak, or climbing a mountain in Al Ula.

Collaborator 2: The University of Hong Kong
A/Prof. Dr. Ir. Arch. Kristof Crolla is a Belgian architect who combines his architecture practice Laboratory for Explorative Architecture & Design Ltd. (LEAD) with an Associate Professorship at the University of Hong Kong. In 2019, he was appointed by the International Network for Bamboo and Rattan (INBAR) as a Task Force Expert Member – Bamboo Construction. He trained and taught at the Architectural Association, School of Architecture (AA), and worked for many years for Zaha Hadid Architects, London. In 2010 he moved to Hong Kong, where his academic research and office work focusses on the strategic implementation of computation in architectural design practice. For this, he received over thirty international design, research, and teaching awards, including the G-Mark (Japan), Architizer A+ (USA) Awards, the 2016 World Architectural Festival Award - Small Project of the Year 2016, and the RMIT Vice-Chancellor’s Prize for Research Impact. Most notable projects include ‘Golden Moon (Hong Kong, 2012)’ and ‘ZCB Bamboo Pavilion (Hong Kong, 2015)’.

If you are accepted to the challenge, the Zoom link will be sent to the registered email address.