Tuesday 27 April 2010

The Honeycomb Vase

Honeycomb Vase, "Made by Bees", by Studio Libertiny.
Seen in the MoMA.


Rapid manufacturing is a process by which computer-controlled lasers solidify liquid or powdered resin to create a three-dimensional rendering of a digital design. By contrast, the Honeycomb Vase was produced through what the artist has called "slow manufacturing": Libertíny constructed a vase-shaped beehive scaffold (to be removed at the end of the process) and then let nature take its course. Forty thousand bees build the vase in one week.

Honeycomb like structure build by humans and machines has been studied by Andrew Kudless and by ILEK students.

Tuesday 6 April 2010

Parametric Structural Design Lecture at MIT

In the 19th century, graphic statics, a geometric method for the analysis of the force distribution in structures, has been developed. This scientific, precise method has an intuitive and descriptive character based on reciprocal force diagrams. The recent emergence of parametric design techniques in architecture enables the construction of associative geometry in CAD systems. In this lecture, a novel approach will be presented, combining parametric tools with historic techniques of graphic statics. This highly interactive three-dimensional procedure provides direct control of form and forces at the same time. The aim of this approach is the integration of the flow of forces into the computer aided design process.

John Ochsendorf kindly invited Lorenz Lachauer to present at the MIT Masonry Research Group on Monday April 12. Recent research from the BLOCK Research Group and the Chair of Structural Design will be presented.