Responsive Morphology

This studio will explore the design, performance, and fabrication space of bioinspired responsive morphologies on large-scale architectural applications. By drawing insights from the functional principles behind the biological role models, the overarching aim of the research is to combine constraint-driven computational design methods, environmental considerations, deep learning methods, and large-scale additive manufacturing through integrated material-driven design methodologies to investigate functional and responsive building skin morphologies.

Throughout the semester, students will be encouraged to work collaboratively and approach the research questions with an explorative, experiment-based, and interdisciplinary mindset. The studio will offer the opportunity to delve into topics encompassing responsive building skins, deep learning algorithms, computational design and simulation, natural inspirations, actuation principles and mechanisms, material integration, robotic additive manufacturing, and environmental principles. The interaction of multifaceted criteria related to the responsive building skin will be the pivotal factor driving the performative design investigations. Computational design and robotic fabrication will serve as a basis for expanding the development of integrative modeling approaches for both the analysis and exploration of new and high-resolution responsive morphologies akin to the ones observed in nature.

Working in teams alongside academic staff, students will rigorously design, model, and test concepts through digital design, simulation, and physical fabrication. The most promising research findings developed during the studio will lay the groundwork for designing and realizing the full-scale ITECH Research Demonstrator in the subsequent semester.