MakeLab 2011 was a five-day workshop engaging in innovative architectural fabrication processes, organised by AA’s Design and Make programme in collaboration with the AA Digital Prototyping Lab.
Aiming to explore the integration of digitally-driven fabrication technologies in the context of Hooke Park’s forestry and workshop resources, the workshop produced two projects based around experimental digital software and hardware tools.
The first project was based around a custom designed, low cost CNC fabrication process used to build a double curved timber grid shell. Grid shells are single and/or double curved surfaces that transfer compression forces in the plane of the
surface through a network of linear elements. They are materially efficient structures and work best if the surfaces have double curvature, but this also makes them difficult to build. The key aspect for fabrication is translating the design data from the computer to the actual material, which for in this project was achieved using an automated CNC marking device. The workflow based around this device allowed the workshop participants to design and build a full scale timber grid shell in a very short time.
The second project undertaken within MakeLab 2011 explored a combination of high-tech equipment and design algorithms in combination with a low-tech construction method implemented by participants on site. The workflow that was set up was based around the X-box Kinect 3D camera and a custom built, portable CNC positioning device, transforming a small clearing in the Hooke Park forest into a digital arena for simultaneous scanning and building. Movements of people through the site were monitored, and translated to a triangulated cellular structure that defines the perimeters of movement pathways. Higher intensities of activity were translated into a more subdivided triangulated structure, allowing the articulation of differences in movement over time.
Coordinators:
Martin Self
Luke Olsen
Jeroen van Ameijde
Tutors:
Brendon Carlin
Michael Grau
Luke Olsen
Jeroen van Ameijde
Hooke Park Workshop Tutor:
Charles Corry Wright
Digital Prototyping Lab Tutor:
Karleung Wai
Visiting Experts:
Abel Maciel
Stefan Kueppers
Participants:
Andre Chaszar
Anam Hasan
Henk Jan Imhoff
Wiktor Kidziak
Quiddale O’Sullivan
Sebastian Partowidjojo
Izis Salvador Pinto
Changda Wu
Yu Zheng
Di Zhuang