Loop_3
academic project
Supervisor: Alessio Erioli – Co-de-iT
“Without mathematics we cannot penetrate deeply into philosophy.
Without philosophy we cannot penetrate deeply into mathematics.
Without both we cannot penetrate deeply into anything.”
Attributed to Leibnitz by Bonnel
[en]
Loop_3 is a project conceived and realized by Loop_3 design team, a group of students form Architectural Design 3 course at the Faculty of Engineering, Università di Bologna, for an installation on invitation by the 1st Architectural Biennale of Thessaloniki – “Architecture and the City in South-Eastetrn Europe” (18.01-26.02 2012).
Mathematics provides an underlying layer for the description of reality’s inner complexity in terms of computation as well as the tools to enhance and intensify research and expression, elegantly and seamlessly linking science, art, economy, philosophy and other disciplines, merging them into force fields of a unified yet topographically differentiated territory. Architects relentlessly explore this territory ever since, using mathematics as a privileged tool for tracing systematic paths as well as enhancing their expressive language.
The installation is a self-standing object that uses mathematical trigonometric functions (explored through parametric design software) as a mean of aesthetic device, exploring a use of rationality in complex shapes that merges user spatial interaction, curvature as a structural and expressive strategy (the voluptuous ripples also strengthen the overall shape) and form as a sorting device to deploy functions (carrying 3D models, showing pictures from various projects as well as a pad to interactively explore design strategies).
“Shapes are diagrams of forces”
D’Arcy Thompson
“Shape determines functions, and the energetics of functions dictates the optimal structure required”
(da “The language of shape – the role of curvature in condensed matter” – Hyde and Larsson, 1997)
Loop_3 explores the rationality of complex shapes joining spatial interaction, curvature as structural and expressive strategy (the voluptuous ripples give help the overall stability) and shape as sorting system for the deployment of functions (flat parts are intended for 3D prototypes while pictures occupy the most vertical surface parts to facilitate reading).
All installation components are derived from planar elements and collaborate mutually to structural stability, morphological organization and function deployment, creating systemic relations among the various parts differently from traditional structure-skin-ornament linear dependency (the tensioned lycra skin concurs to structural stability while the plywood core morphology comes first from the curvilinear trajectories and then optimizes material use).
[it]
Loop3 è un progetto concepito e realizzato da un gruppo di studenti del corso di Architettura e Composizione Architettonica III della Facoltà di Ingegneria, Università di Bologna per una installazione su invito presso la 1° Biennale di Architettura di Thessaloniki – “Architecture and the City in South-Eastetrn Europe” (18.01-26.02 2012).
La matematica fornisce un substrato in grado di descrivere l’intrinseca complessità della realtà in termini di computazione, fornendo contemporaneamente gli strumenti per far progredire ed intensificare ricerca ed espressione estetica, connettendo elegantemente e senza soluzione di continuità scienza, arte, economia, filosofia e altre discipline unendole in campi di forza di un territorio unico, non omogeneo e topograficamente differenziato.
Gli architetti esplorano incessantemente quel territorio da sempre, usando la matematica quale strumento privilegiato per tracciare percorsi sistematici e migliorare il proprio linguaggio espressivo.
L’installazione è un oggetto autoportante che utilizza le funzioni trigonometriche (indagate e sviluppate, dal design alla fabbricazione, attraverso l’uso di Grasshopper – software di parametric design) come mezzo di espressione estetica, intesa nel suo significato più ampio ed inclusivo.
“Shapes are diagrams of forces”
D’Arcy Thompson
Shape determines functions, and the energetics of functions dictates the optimal structure required
(da “The language of shape – the role of curvature in condensed matter” – Hyde and Larsson, 1997)
Loop_3 esplora l’uso della razionalità di forme complesse che unisce l’interazione spaziale, la curvatura come strategia strutturale ed espressiva (le voluttuose ondulazioni conferiscono rigidezza alla forma nel suo insieme) e la forma come sistema ordinatore per la distribuzione delle funzioni (i modelli 3D sono sistemati nelle parti parallele al piano orizzontale mentre le immagini occupano le parti della superficie più tendente al verticale per facilitarne la fruizione).
Tutte le componenti dell’installazione sono ricavate da elementi piani e concorrono insieme a stabilità strutturale, organizzazione morfologica e distribuzione funzionale, creando relazioni sistemiche tra le varie parti differenti dalle tradizionali relazioni struttura-involucro-ornamento (la skin in lycra concorre alla stabilità strutturale, mentre il core in compensato fenolico ha una morfologia che, oltre ad essere razionalizzata in funzione degli sforzi, è plasmata in origine sulle traiettorie curve).
timelapse video by Matteo Cominetti
CREDITS:
Supervisor: Alessio Erioli (Co-de-iT)
Loop_3 design team:
Corrado Giacobazzi
Federico La Piccirella
Alessandro Liuti
Mattia Mercatali
Roberto Monesi
Simone Rinaldi
Gianluca Tabellini
Livio Talozzi
Michele Tommasoli
Giulia Tortorella
many thanks to Benjamin Ennemoser and Philippe Grotenrath for precious advice during the project’s development.
many thanks also to Matteo Cominetti for additional help, logistics and photo coverage of the assembly (and the awesome timelapse video)
this project was entirely financed by prof. Alessio Erioli and became possible thanks to the awesome, dedicated, passionate work by the students involved in the design team.
The project is © Loop_3 design team + Alessio Erioli – all other material (pictures, videos) is © of the respective authors. All rights reserved. Full or partial reproduction of the project material is forbidden without specific permission from respective authors.
LINKS
Project presentation
Hello! Have you designed this for Hadid?
Hi Simon!
Loop_3 was designed as a standalone installation for the first Thessaloniki Architecture Biennale. The design was done in November-December 2011 and the exhibition was in January-February 2012, then we re-installed it for a few weeks in the atrium of the Engineering Faculty in Bologna in April 2012.
None of the design team of Loop_3 had worked at ZHA project, besides the striking similarity (maybe the design team saw our project but I cannot be sure of that); the scales and the development stages though are radically different, as ZHA is at the moment just more a visual concept while our design had engineering, material system and construction as integral part of the constrain set that informed the design.
Cheers!
Alessio
[…] All installation components are derived from planar elements and collaborate mutually to structural stability, morphological organization and function deployment, creating systemic relations among the various parts differently from traditional structure-skin-ornament linear dependency (the tensioned lycra skin concurs to structural stability while the plywood core morphology comes first from the curvilinear trajectories and then optimizes material use). – in co-de-it […]