April 18th, 2012
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April 18th, 2012
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September 27th, 2011
Click on this link to view a short video that demonstrates the parametric/scripting system that we developed in Grasshopper and Rhinoscript to manipulate the digital model throughout the design phase. After a form is selected – a script is run on the main regulating lines to create the structure. Note: the video is without sound. Total Length: 5.45
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September 27th, 2011
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September 27th, 2011
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March 24th, 2011
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March 21st, 2011
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February 24th, 2011
Anca Trandafirescu, with the assistance of Glenn Wilcox and Le Nguyen, was recognized for HOT AIR by the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture (ACSA) with the Faculty Design Honorable Mention.
HOT AIR is the temporary installation of a large inflatable, inhabitable monument in honor of the twentieth anniversary of the overthrow of the Romanian government. The project’s name refers to both the unusually warm temperatures in Romania during that week in December 1989, which helped to bring citizens out into the streets to rally against the government; and also to the large amount of rhetoric surrounding these events.
ACSA annually honors faculty who have demonstrated excellence by providing a venue for work that advances the reflective nature of practice and teaching by recognizing and encouraging outstanding work in architecture and related environmental design fields as a theoretical endeavor.
HOT AIR was exhibited Nov. 3-7, 2009, in Timisoara, Romania, and was also on display in Ann Arbor in spring 2010 as part of TedX.
Trandafirescu and Wilcox will accept the Faculty Design Honorable Mention at the 99th ACSA Annual Meeting, March 3-6, 2011, in Montréal, Québec.
ACSA awarded three top prizes and six honorable mentions this year. HOT AIR, along with the other award-winning projects, will be published in the digital 2011 Architectural Education Awards Book.
To read more about HOT AIR—and to view photos and video—visit the 2009 news post.
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November 19th, 2010
Our Runner-Up entry to the 2010
TEX-FAB Repeat design competition.
tetra | n project is based on the desire to design a generative
self-supporting structure capable of variable form – through utilizing a
single robust detail – one which could be fabricated out of flat stock
material. tetra | n project accomplishes this through two means. First is
the development of part geometry based on a tetrahedron (see diagram) –
structured in this way – the generation of more complex geometry through
simple base geometry always produces well – formed planar objects.
Additionally, coincident faces of adjacent tetrahedrons always produce
continuous forms – joints always meet correctly – regardless of the
position or scale of the next part. Secondly – through the utilization of
Rhinoscript – highly complex variable formed structures of n tetrahedrons
are possible. The script is ‘run’ on an assembled tetrahedral base
structure – part generation, connective element generation, labeling,
drill holes, and part flattening are integral functions of the script.
tetra | n is formed as a single unified tower structure with an occupiable
base that supports itself simply by standing on the ground. Depth and
redundancy in the form develop not only a robust structure – but a level
of complexity and intricacy found only in organic forms. The visual effect
is of a structure that is, on the one hand, highly ordered, rigorous and
geometric, and on the other degenerates into near chaos, simulates organic
growth, and confounds clear distinctions between foreground and background.
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September 16th, 2010
Below are our two entries for the Sukkah City design competition. All of the entries and winning designs can be viewed through the competion site – sukkahcity.com The twelve selected designs are still under construction – but should be completed soon – with the ultimate winner choosen by the public.
This Sukkah design is composed of two essential components – a light weight wood composite surface element and a folded metal frame element. Connected through a single – but variable detail, the two component types form one continuous structural surface. The laser and CNC cut components: 1,048 frame elements and 672 surface elements in total are joined by 4,032 fasteners. Although each element is similar in kind – no one part is identical to another. The development and fabrication of the design is made possible only through parametric computer scripting in connection with digital fabrication technologies. This continuous surface structure – which could be considered either a roof that becomes a wall or a wall that becomes a roof – is composed of elements no greater than 4 handbreadths (16 inches) in compliance with the Talmud laws.
Although constructed out of wood and metal– our Sukkah design is meant to evoke something other – eluding in both form and construction to historical Sukkah structures composed of woven textiles, the mythological use of animal carcasses, and a vessel which is both welcoming and sheltering. The intention of the patterned surface is both iconic in its reference to natural leaf forms, star patterns – and utilitarian in its structural triangulation, porosity, and ocular focus on the sky. Lastly, our Sukkah table is designed to conform and work with the dynamic space and present a democratic / non-hierarchical seating arrangement.
slide is the design for a highly flexible and compactable sukkah. It takes into consideration the shortage of space in most New York City apartments and offers a prototypical unit that can compact and expand as needed. Using principles of English fabric smocking, we constructed elasticity out of inflexible materials by hinging twenty-six (10’ x 12’) ¾”honeycomb paperboard panels together. The panels are hinged at varying intervals to create a varied field of dappled light as it enters the sukkah from above. The honeycomb material is very lightweight but very strong, a combination which we hope enhances the flexibility of the piece. In the configuration presented, slide can accommodate very small Sukkot dinners (2 persons) up to larger ones (as many as 12 persons) by being pulled apart. The furniture is built into the unit so the table and benches expand with the unit. Material remaining from the cutting of the panels will be used as panels for the floor, table, and bench surfaces of differing dimensions. At the end of the holiday, slide can be saved for next year in two (5’ x 10’ x 12’) bundles or completely recycled.
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