ON PECULIAR GROUNDS
explores the hunt for new physical connections between the constructed and the evolved and aims to combine the incomparable.
This Masterstudio is dedicated to develope design processes that incorporate natural as well as artificial grounds, to form deeper understandings of the relations of objects to their surroundings and new tectonics of space within.
As „ground“, or „terrain“, we understand the physical and geographical features of a piece of land or a specific place. It encompasses all the natural characteristics of an area. Geomorphology, the study of landscape formations, examines the processes that have shaped the terrain through influences of the environment. Therefore the environment informs the terrain inevitably and affects all properties like hydrological factors, flora and fauna, climate, atmosphere, and the overall suitability for various actions, programs, or purposes.
In architecture, the term “geomorphological” could be used to describe how a building or structure meets the natural environment and takes into account that also the terrain informs the building. Therefore we perceive geomorphology as a significant part of a tectonic design methodology, where the buildings are assemblages of heterogeneous entities in interaction or even in connection with nature.
Buildings, as artificially arranged structures, composed of different parts, as assemblages, would no longer strictly adhere to a familiar figure-ground relation. Instead, they can establish a closer connection with nature and become integrated into natural systems as a part of a whole.
In the dialogue between the natural and the artificial, and in considering complex relational contexts, we perceive artificial intelligence (AI) as a powerful contributor to our design process. Based on our input and our decisions, AI will help us envision that the constructed and the natural can be conceived as a part of an emergent whole.
This implies the exploration of innovative concepts, methodologies, or approaches that involve the intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and the natural world within the field of architecture. It suggests a focus on unexplored aspects and the pursuit of new ideas and solutions e.g. through the incorporation of contemporary image-generating software.
The studio’s design process will let us venture onto uncharted terrain, exploring new subjects and negotiations of nature, form, space, and program.
This course will take place weekly at the seminar room of the ./studio3 at the 2nd floor. First meeting on 05.10.2023, 10.00h
