090930 More Sites for Voronoi Cell

I just want to sum up all the research for Voronoi Cell with several links. Perhaps you can add more in the comment box.

Background:
Wikipedia

Examples:
seen.by.spiegel - voronoi-cell-cluster by Oilvan Oesterle, Michael Knauss
voronoi-diagram by imcyborg
Responsive Volatility - Programme

RhinoScript/Grasshopper:
RhinoScript Wiki
un didi - 3d-voronoi-in-grasshopper by Dimitrie Stefanescu
Rhinoscripting by Kenfield Griffith, John Snavely
Kokugia - RvbScript
RhinoScript.org

090930 Material System Design

Matsys

Established in 2004 by Andrew Kudless, Matsys is a design studio that explores the emergent relationships between architecture, engineering, biology, and computation. Based on the idea that architecture can be understood as a material body with its own intrinsic and extrinsic forces relating to form, growth, and behavior, the studio investigates methodologies of performative integration through geometric and material differentiation. The studio’s work ranges from speculative and built projects to the crafting of new tools which facilitate an interdisciplinary approach to the design and fabrication of architecture.

Bio
Andrew Kudless is an architect based in San Francisco where he is an assistant professor at the California College of the Arts. Andrew has taught design studios, workshops, and seminars at The Ohio State University, the Architectural Association (London), Yale University, and Rice University. In 2005 Andrew was the Howard E. LeFevre Fellow for Emerging Practitioners at OSU. He earned a Master of Arts with distinction from the Architectural Association’s Emergent Technologies and Design graduate program and a Master of Architecture with honors from the Tulane University School of Architecture. In 2004 he was the recipient of a Design Merit Award in the Far Eastern International Digital Architecture Design (FEIDAD) competition and in 1998 he was awarded a Fulbright Fellowship to research architectural design and urbanism in the Kansai region of Japan. He has worked as a designer for Allied Works Architecture in Portland and New York and as a digital design, modeling, and fabrication consultant for Expedition Engineering in London. Andrew’s work has been exhibited in the US, England, France, Japan and China.

Here are some of their works.

090928 Voronoi Pattern Study

I challenge the skin structure of the towers by making it more organic with Voronoi Cell System. Before heading into the actual structure itself, I studied on what Voronoi Cell is about and precedented works. As described in Wikipedia, a Voronoi

"... diagram is a special kind of decomposition of a metric space determined by the distances to a specified discrete set of objects in the space."



Por Jorge Huang Li, the editor of VANGUARQ beyong architecture, blogged a post on "Futuristic cellular structure architecture". Basically he researched on the cellular structure in the mainly the field of architecture. Be interested to look at some real and virtual works from his blog.

So, here's some of the models that I have done with the Voronoi Script. It takes me a while to know how exactly this plug-in works. And the pipe command in Rhino just too inconvenient because you've got to do it on every curve. So I have to use 3ds max's modifier to give the spline a thickness.



-> editable spline
-> enable in view port -> radial (set thickness)
-> editable mesh
-> import back to Rhino (pain in the neck ... )

Here are a couple of results that I have made for the skyscrapers:


Learning how to use the PointSet plugin


Computed Voronoi 3D Cells


Voronoi Cells in rectangular tower


Voronoi Cells in circular tower

090927 CCTV by OMA

Today I dig into studying the structural element of CCTV by OMA. CCTV has a primary steel structure on the facade which wraps around the whole building as a loop. The pattern on the facade is purely generated from the resulting analysis by several structural engineering softwares.

To begin with, I would like to quote some lines from the Introduction of A + U special edition on CCTV by OMA written by Ole Scheeren. He questioned on the nature of skyscrapers and also the future typology of skyscrapers in relation to the urban development.


Shibata, N., CCTV by OMA: Rem Koolhaas and Ole Scheeren, A+U, Tokyo, 2005.

" ... Is it a typology that has become the ultimate tool of financial speculation, enslaved to economics and devoid of contents? Is it nothing more than the constant and monotonous repetition of a piece of land in vertical direction, whose only aim is the profitable multiplication of the value of the ground, and whose only means of expression are reduced to striving for absolute height and dominance of the skyline of a city (if not the whole world)? Is nothing left but the self-referential quality of a vertical line, which desperately seeks (to compensate for the lack of) identity, with a decorative top sprouting a flower, pagoda style or modernist composition? Is the higher the better? all that remains? ... "

" ... After the promise of surprising programmatic variety in its initial incarnations (Manhatten), the skyscraper became emptier and emptier - and was finally adopted by Asia ... the ultimate symbol of tis modernisation at the very moment of its conceptual implosion ... " " ... It seems about time to no longer treat this typology as a commercial export product ( and subject it to the apparently irrevocable laws of Central Business Districts as their ultimate model), but instead to re-think the skyscraper as a potential for new urban manifestations ... " - end of quote

These questions stay valid, still, that, as we can see there are a lot of new typology in skyscrapers, e.g. challenging structure, modularisation, eco-towers. All these typologies have their validity with, undeniably, strong reasons/motives behind. CCTV does not exclude in this, what I called "A New Movement in Digital Architecture" which I have mentioned in my previous post. So maybe after many years later, CCTV will become like an avant-garde in the history of architecture.

Here are some of the highlighted writings in jpeg and some images of CCTV itself. Please click the image for better resolution:


Introduction by Ole Scheeren


Programme


Site Plan


Overall Diagrams


Text


Structural Studies


Structural Study Models (there are really a lot of these by Arup!)


Unfold Facade showing Structural Stress


Text + Exploded Diagram of Facade


Final Model featuring its Structure


Axo-Diagram




Key Text




Structural Analysis







Structural Documentation Drawings

More information can be found from arcspace.com, OMA official website, miragestudio7, e-architect and archiCentral.

Last but not least, here's a video clip showing OMA CCTV Presentation Video found at archifield.

090922 Modular Skyscraper??

Modular Skyscraper is a topic not within my field of research. However, after reading Inhabitat's post on Bio-Fuel Growing Eco Pods Rejuvenate Stalled Boston Project written by Bridgette Meinhold, I felt like writing something before I go to bed.



Modular Skyscraper is not new at all. As for as I remember, Moshe Safdie's Habitat'67 in Montreal Canada built in 1967 is a modular apartment.



Kisho Kurokawa's Nakagin Capsule Tower in Japan is another good example of modular apartment, but it is facing a strong debate over its demolition. As written in PingMag, the public has voted that this building has to be demolished due to high maintenance cost and uninhabitable space. If you have the chance to see it for the last time, you better be hurry!



Travel back to some recent projects such as Vertical Park designed by Jorge Hernandez de la Garza in Mexico. The project did not continue due to high cost and did not win the public voice.



Another famous one is by MVRDV called Sky Village. Many websites have featured this project as an evolution project which incorporate refined structure, ideal private and public space and the green. You can find some more info from COMTEMPORIST, dezeen, and bdonline.



MVRDV, a group of Data Architects, started to evolve into a modular pixelated world. What the architects are trying to do is perhaps to find a proper solution for this globalising and soon globalised world. The totality of the universe perhaps is the driving force in exploration of such. Not putting MVRDV on this table for discussion, but at this moment, I can not say modular has an architectural quality. It is more like a system which can create millions of solutions. From modular shape to its detail in exterior skin system, from its stacking pattern to its solid-void manipulation. It seems like this system could possibly be put into any part of the world. However, architecture is not about modularisation. Modular buildings can only be interesting when they start to stack very randomly. Architecture has its uniqueness to its particular site. It cannot be modularised. Unless the universe or even the Earth has a modular pattern, I see no point in doing modular "architecture". A site has no particular modular, it is human who creates this modular for modular architecture. Perhaps, yeah, modular architecture will only exist in a modular context. Modular architecture is a very technical solution which can easily be separated from conventional architecture. And is that really simple to solve all human-nature solutions by using boxes? I doubt so.

To shut down myself, I just quickly show you recent MVRDV's dnb nor headquarters, norway once posted on designboom.





Iconic? When there are more of this kind of buildings. This building won't be as iconic anymore.

090921 KAUST University, Saudi Arabia

Reading through my Google Reader yesterday and saw this building posted on ArchDaily.

KAUST University, Saudi Arabia

As a whole, this is not a bad university designed by HOK with generous interior spaces. Quite impressed to see this building getting built in Saudi Arabia though. The central atrium ceiling treatment perhaps have some abstracted symbolic representation? Anyway, the interesting thing that caught my eye is the Breakwater Beacon! This, has been said to be part of the coastal ecosystem. I wonder how it actually works. Forget about the sustainable function of it. The shape of that Beacon is intriguing and similar to what I am trying to do for my project. Very organic. The openings are controlled within a simple set of parametric system. Some openings are clear glazing and some are sealed. The exterior honeycomb shape recalls MAD Architects Sinosteel International Plaza which I posted previously. Photos time:


View of the Beacon for the opposite shore


View from the crane 01


View from the crane 02


Interior, as you can see some of the honeycomb cells are distorted to fit the skin


Without the scaffolding I think it should be quite phenomenal

090920 FUN's Blog

Found another interesting blog just for "eye-candy" purposes.

FUN's Blog moderated by ZhenFei Wang and LuMing Wang. As far as I understand, both of them work for UN Studio.

http://zfcloud.blogspot.com/

090920 Sinosteel International Plaza by MAD

Quoted from dezeen,

Sinosteel International Plaza by MAD

July 30th, 2008

Construction is underway on the Sinosteel International Plaza in Tinajin, China designed by Beijing-based architects MAD.

The development consists of a 358 metre-high office tower and adjacent hotel at 88 metres.

An external honeycomb structure incorporates hexagonal windows in five different sizes, arranged according to wind and solar direction on the site in order to regulate the internal temperature of the towers.

Building is due for completion in 2012.

The following information is from MAD:

–

SINOSTEEL INTERNATIONAL PLAZA UNDER CONSTRUCTION

A new MAD building is under construction. The Sinosteel International Plaza will be a new organic, honeycomb icon for the redeveloped city of Tinajin. The building will be completed by 2012.

The Chinese central government has named Tianjin, a port city one hour east of Beijing, as the next step in its economic plan. Within Tianjin, they will create the Binhai New District, the new economic hub of Northern China. This will be achieved in five years. Sino Steel, China’s state owned steel giant, commissioned MAD to create a landmark for this new central business district. They specified two towers: an office tower (358 metres) and a smaller hotel (88 metres).

We wanted to move away from the usual image of the central business district: rows and rows of glass and steel boxes. Our design is natural, organic and futuristic.

The shape of the two buildings is very simple: a rounded box. The façade is constructed from five different sizes of hexagonal windows, a traditional element in Chinese architecture. These windows flow across the building in an irregular, naturally occurring pattern: like cells multiplying. This pattern gives life to the building, changing the way it looks from different perspectives. The towers rise from a green hill which functions as the hotel’s podium, a further contrast against the hard surfaces in the rest of the Binhai New District.

The honeycomb façade is also what’s holding the building up: the skin is the structure. This removes any need for internal structures, freeing up the building to a much more flexible use. This bold new solution will challenge conventional construction technology, in order to achieve something unique. A perfect combination of strength and beauty.

The honeycomb also allows the building to be energy efficient. Although the pattern at first appears to be random, it actually responds to patterns of sun and wind on the building. By mapping the different air flows and solar direction across the site, we were able to position different sized windows accordingly, minimizing heat loss in the winter and heat gain in the summer.

Our design sees oriental features combined with novel, futuristic building methods. The Sinosteel International Plaza will become something natural, growing in the man-made environment of this new urban area.

Client: SINOSTEEL International Plaza (Tianjin) Ltd
Status: under construction. To be completed 2012.
Programme: Office, Hotel, Service Apartment
Site Area: 26,666 sqm
Building Area: 350,000 sqm
Building Height: 358m
Director in Charge: Ma Yansong, Qun Dang
Design Team: Eric Spencer, Liu Xiaopu, Tony Yam, So Sugita, Zhao Wei, Wang Xingfang, Li Jieran, Lu Lu
Associate Architects/Engineers: Jiang Architects & Engineers

–

Posted by Rose Etherington

You can also find more info from other websites such as archinoovations, GIZMODO and ARCHITECTURE LIST.

Interestingly, as I dig into Archifield.net (Chinese forum for advanced computing), I found a thread on "decoding" the methodology of doing this building. The discussion includes the software being used. And what kind of scripts are being used to generate gradual change in aperture. Then there is a link links back to RhinoScript discussion which I find really useful in changing the aperture - attractor tools scale.

More testing with this script after the break.