Co-Taught: Christopher Romano + Micheal Hoover

Group Design Lead: Randy Fernando

Designed as a large, open exhibition space, Palazzo del Lavoro, or The Palace of Labour, consists of sixteen independent columns, called “umbrellas”, which support the entire building. The columns feature a varying cross section, with branching radial beams stretching to the roof from the top of the column.

The proposed column design takes inspiration from the precedent. Featuring a varying cross section, starting from an octagon shape and into a cruciform. This adds additional facets to the column, increasing its strength. The column also introduces branching, similar to the ideas of the precedent with its branching umbrellas. The goal of this feature is to create a more spatial experience for people interacting with the column. Additionally, it provides an opportunity to test the relationship between the compression of the column, with the tension of the branches.

Multi-media formwork allowed for more complex geometries to be used in the design. This however, also led to additional challenges in the fabrication process. The biggest problem was the tolerances of each of the fabrication processes to come together.

Sustainable Futures’ nine week program offers students the opportunity to live and work in a rural, but rapidly developing region on the Pacific slope in Costa Rica. This is a “service learning” engagement where the studio works on community-identified projects that envision and create futures that are ecologically and socially just. Since the program’s inception in 1995, Sustainable Futures has contributed to planning, design, and construction of dozens of projects throughout the area.

SF2024 focuses on ecological materials and making in the rain forest and includes hands-on opportunities to explore biomimicry, living structures, and repurposed materials. The three courses synthesize ideas of ecological practice across study, research, design, and making. The work focuses on generating responses to community requests to generate a public dialogue.

Title | Imaginative Realities: Crafting Architectural Narratives with Digital Media

The course will empower students with the fluency to navigate a diverse range of cutting-edge digital tools and technologies that are integral to contemporary architectural practice. By immersing themselves in software such as Rhino for advanced 3D modeling, laser cutting, CNC fabrication, 3D printing, and various visualization platforms.

including Photoshop, AI Fill Tools, Mid Journey, Concept Design, Lumion, Enscape, and VRAY, students will unlock the creative potential of these mediums. With a strong emphasis on cultivating a seamless exchange between two-dimensional and three-dimensional domains, participants will learn to translate intricate architectural concepts into compelling narratives that transcend the boundaries of traditional representation.

Through a series of meticulously curated activities, students will not only hone their proficiency in utilizing these tools but also cultivate a heightened sensitivity to the nuances of digital and analog craftsmanship. The course goes beyond technical mastery, delving into the realm of critical thinking, file management, and efficient media output for various contexts. As students embark on projects that demand the convergence of technology and creative intuition, they will cultivate a comprehensive skill set that prepares them to tackle the multifaceted challenges posed by the ever-evolving landscape of architectural design.

"Imaginative Realities: Crafting Architectural Narratives with Digital Media" equips students with the essential capabilities to seamlessly bridge the gap between imaginative concepts and tangible design manifestations. By fostering a deep appreciation for the synergies between digital and physical modes of representation, this course empowers future architects to convey their creative visions with precision, nuance, and a profound resonance that resonates in a world driven by transformative digital technologies.

Title | Fusing Dimensions: The Transposition of Virtual and Physical Realities

Level: Graduate Technical Methods Seminar

Co-Taught: Shawn Chiki Lewis

This course utilizes experiential learning methods to address how designers can interface the nuances of real and virtual environments during the creative process. Tools used in this course include Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, AI, Grasshopper, Rhinoceros 3D, Blender, 3D Scanning/Drone 3D Scanning, Advanced 3D modeling, simulation software, and 3D printing. The course will be run with weekly workshops that ultimately will culminate with the production of virtual and physical artifacts that will be displayed as part of an immersive exhibition at the end of the term.

In this course, students will explore the increasingly blurred boundaries between digital and physical phenomena. Utilizing virtual reality, we will sculpt, interact, build, and play within virtual spaces, then bring these experiences into the tangible world as physical prototypes. We will embrace the quirks and imperfections of unpredictable digital tools as collaborators, influencing our methods and aesthetics. By encouraging the use of accessible yet flawed technologies, we aim to stretch our collective imagination of the future of our built environments. From glitching software to creating mixed media environments, students will learn to navigate and manipulate the gaps in both digital and physical worlds that await exploration.

This seminar offers students a unique opportunity to explore the frontier of architectural design, cultivating a rich set of technical skills that are increasingly relevant in contemporary practice. The course is designed for those who are eager to push the boundaries of design and technology, and who are interested in exploring new methods of visualizing and realizing architectural spaces.

By fusing these dimensions, we can set new technological standards in the fields of construction, manufacturing, and design, pushing the boundaries of what is possible in the evolving digital landscape. This course will provide hands-on experience with cutting-edge technologies, alongside theoretical discussions about their implications in the field of architecture. This blend of practical skills and intellectual inquiry will equip students to navigate and contribute to the evolving landscape of architectural design.