Research's IaaC - Students Research - Research Studios

Research Studio III: Digital Tectonics
Faculty: Marta Male-Alemany
Co-Faculty: Victor Viña
Assistant: César Cruz Cázares
Student: Melat Assefa, Joao Nuno Palaio Albuquerque, Brian Peters

Research Studio III: Digital Tectonics
Faculty: Marta Male-Alemany
Co-Faculty: Victor Viña
Assistant: César Cruz Cázares
Student: Joel Letkemann, Viraj Kataria, Fabio Lopez

The studio project is centred on the development of a CNC robot, which creates molds in sand, as an ecological alternative to standard molds used in making concrete wall panels and other building components.

Designing Associativity

Faculty: Luis Fraguada
Student: Joel Letkemann

Sun Shade

Grasshopper Solution
The sun panel is a fully parametric model, which is connected to a single attraction point within the Rhino file. Several different parameters can be manipulated within this solution, as the shade device ‘pulls’ towards the sun.

Introductory Design Studio I - ArboReal Home (Treehouse)

Faculty: Areti Markopoulou, Luis Fraguada
Advisor: Gerard Passola
Guest Tutor: Michel Rojkind
Students: Lourdes Marcano, Kathleen Anderson, Ekateria Ageeva

Introductory Design Studio I - ArboReal Home (Treehouse)

Faculty: Areti Markopoulou, Luis Fraguada
Advisor: Gerard Passola
Guest Tutor: Michel Rojkind
Students: Hristo Topchiev

Introductory Design Studio I - ArboReal Home (Treehouse)

Faculty: Areti Markopoulou, Luis Fraguada
Advisor: Gerard Passola
Guest Tutor: Michel Rojkind
Students: Viraj Kataria,Asim Hameed

Introductory Design Studio I - ArboReal Home (Treehouse)

Faculty: Areti Markopoulou, Luis Fraguada
Advisor: Gerard Passola
Guest Tutor: Michel Rojkind
Students: Emil Burulyanov, Fabio Andres Lopez

Ginkgo Biloba Siesta Place Treehouse

The concept of the tree house began from the idea of climbing up the tree. In the beginning the structure literally representaed a central voilume and hands and feet grabbing the branches. The concept evolved fast beacause of structurural and aesthetic considerations. It passed through climbing to hanging, from 4 strucutral strong points to 2 and then to 3 one of which a cable connection. Organic shapes were represented by rib outlines connected with carbon steel pipes. Structure affected the trunk only and tried to go around the branches as opposed to the beginning of the projecct when it was hanging on them. The volume itself consisted of a large space thought in a way to offer a relaxed hideaway. A siesta place in which one can take a nap and release the streess. In the process 2 different methods of constucting the actual structure were considered. Joining many different sections of pipes and ribs with siple bolted connections at an angle or CNC bending the whole lenght of the pipes, which is thought beyond the 15 meter mark, so it may be more continous and homogenious when seen from a close range but much more expensive and having the same effects as different sections when looked from a distance. Lower part of the horizontal ribs, which also were radiating from a central point to express the shape better, were used as stairs for climbing up, while simultaneously pointing pipe ends through smaller and smaller diameters to a concrete block anchored to the ground and covered with soil to be invinsible. In this block the pipes come together and complete the structural cycle. Outer skin of the house can be changed with cloth-like material to suit better the inhabitant and cater for different seasons, temperatures, moods and shading patterns.

Introductory Design Studio I - ArboReal Home (Treehouse)

Faculty: Areti Markopoulou, Luis Fraguada
Advisor: Gerard Passola
Guest Tutor: Michel Rojkind
Students: Margherita Filpi, Marianne Villalobos Emonet

BRANCHY HOUSE

 Cocculus main characteristics underlined by the previous tree analysis:

-Multitrunked  tree

-Twsting and torsioning as a structural strategy

-Umbrella shape canopy

-Joints: strongest structural points

-Branch located in the best position to get the sun is the oldest and the dominant.

 Keypoints  focused on for the project:

1.Fisiology of the tree ,to keep on mind in order not to damage the tree (preserve roots, light need of the leaves).

2. The macrostructure of the tree creates an interesting void space .

3. Jointsas possible points to anchor the structure

4. Characteristical way of colonization of the tree.

Design process_The branchy house is a big object torsioning and twisting that is working as another branch following the genetic, the geometry, the way of bending,  torsioning and twisting of the cocculus tree and maintaining its logical structure. Starts growing from an existing branch,then it splits growing toward the top looking for the sun, and in direction of the ground in order to colonize, as the natural genetic of the tree tends to do when it is left free in the forest.

It has been influenced  by the environment  in the way it tooks advantage of the ‘’available space’’ in order to grow.

The permeable skin of the house is an abstraction of the pattern of the Cocculus leaves, which reproduce at a microscale the same broken lines and movements of the branches. As going toward the top it enlarges and grows in its internal dimension opening more itself and changing its resolution depending on the sun, the environment  and on the ‘’spaces’’ that the tree provides to the house to get pleasure from.

 Program & function _A new branch as a playful object.The branchy house is an object to be  discovered. The program proposed is the result of the study of the scale and the qualities of the tree.  A camping house for kids is growing at the top of this zig - zagging structure, where the idea is to experience the tectonics of this tree by this new branch.

Playing-jumping-climbing up-exploring-hiding-sliding-springboard-permeable are some of the key words that better describes the activities that the house can generate  in its young users, the only ones allowed to enter  and enjoy its secrets.