Graphics Reference
In-Depth Information
As technology advances, we continue to return to nature for inspiration.
Nature's designs represent elegant and time-tested solutions to the challenges
of the physical world. As expressed by design architect Michael Pawlyn in a
TED talk in 2010, “You could look at nature as being like a catalog of products,
and all of those have beneited from a 3.8-billion-year research and develop-
ment period.”
Responsive design
In another architectural college in central London, students 3D print hon-
eycomb structures and futuristic dome-shaped architectural prototypes. I
stopped by the Architectural Association School of Architecture during a
visit to London. The school was well-concealed inside a several grand, gray
stone rowhouses, just a few blocks from Trafalgar Square. I learned later that
the school purchased these rows of houses years ago, before London housing
prices became as astronomical as they are today. From the street, the only
hint of the school's presence is a discreet banner hanging from one of the
gray stone houses.
Earlier over email, I had been introduced to the School's professor of digital
prototyping, Jeroen van Ameijde, who was to meet me for an interview. Inside
the school's front door, a hallway led back to a bustling and sunny reception
area. The day I was there, the place was looded with eager prospective stu-
dents dropping off their applications, precious design portfolios wrapped in
brown paper.
Jeroen van Ameijde is one of the resident experts on 3D design and 3D print-
ing. After our introductions, he led me from the reception area down the stairs
to the Digital Prototyping Unit, a warren of connected, cavernous underground
rooms tucked away in the back of the school. Several small manufacturing
machines covered the surfaces of tables and abstract, 3D printed sculptures
hung from the ceiling. Most of the area's horizontal surfaces were cluttered
with oddly shaped 3D printed design experiments.
The unit's chambers weren't always so educationally oriented. Jeroen told
me that these rooms were host to a Pink Floyd concert in the 1970s. Before
that, in the 1950s, architectural students used to hold swing dance parties
where the manufacturing machines now stand.
Jeroen was hired by the school 5 years ago to teach digital prototyping
and design. “I was overwhelmed with interest when I got here,” said Jeroen.
“There was a tremendous pent-up demand for more computer-intensive design
