Teaching and Experimenting with Architectural Design

Maria Vrontissi Department of Architecture, University of Thessaly, Volos, Greece 143

As the discourse is moving over from theoretical formal investigations to built appli-

cations of digitally generated free forms, questions of structure, materials and 1:1

scale manufacturing techniques are brought in to surface.

New, but differentiated, interest in tectonic culture, in materiality, in manufactur-

ing processes and mass or custom production systems is developing and lightweight

structures are again in the foreground, not so much in terms of form, but especially

for their design parameters (interrelation of form/ shape, material, processes).

Lightweight structures: precedents with significant educational value

Teaching architectural design of lightweight structures is dealing with the new reality

created by recent technological advances, in a range of cases. The course objective

is to enrich the design vocabulary and explore design principles and tools towards a

meaningful study and creative implementation of innovative architecture. Lightweight

structures are a precedent of significant educational value in order to understand

complex interrelations among design parameters and enable a resourceful collabora-

tion between design specialists.

Educational tools have an important, yet not dominant, digital technology compo-

nent. Design assignments address questions of form, materials, structure, construction

and/ or manufacturing technologies exploring different degrees of digital technology

applications.

The sometimes limited tools and means, while application oriented, form a teach-

ing approach towards exploring methods and developing strategies and criteria instead

of investigating tools or training for specific skills and competences.

In the design of advanced technology systems dealing with long span, large scale

structures addresses the issue of diversity of architectural languages and related tools,

techniques and processes [Fig. 4]. The issue of buildability is apparent [Fig. 5]; the

principles of ‘organic’ architecture are questioned by digitally possible free-forms

Fig. 3
Digitally possible com-
plexly shaped building
designs relying on bend-
ing stresses – Guggen-
heim Museum in Bilbao,
Spain by F. Gehry