DESIGN STUDIO LAB A
Prof. Celestino Soddu
1st semester A.A. 2006/2007.
The Design Studio Lab A operates defining design logics able to fit and to reach the complex quality of contemporary cities, habitat and environment. Each student will design defining rules able to operate a synthesis of his own cultural and technological references as "modus operandi". This approach will support the management of design path following aesthetical, functional and technological needs, valuated as dynamic not-linear complex system.
Students will realize a project in the environment of the lake of Como. The aim is to design a new architecture able to improve the environmental identity of this site.The function of the designed architectural event can change following the peculiar interest of each student and the character of the context. The design experience will arrive until the architectural executive design in the way that each student have to operate choices at all the scales.The methodological approach is generative design, an advanced design approach able to fit the quality in progress and the feasibility of a new architecture inside environmental systems considered as dynamic not-linear systems.
This approach manages the complexity of contemporary environment because it defines the design choices not as forms but as environment’s transformations, fitting the progressive evolution and identity of each site.In practice, each student will define a system of design modalities, of control paradigms able to identify the design idea as “modus operandi”, as environment identity in progress, using all the technological and aesthetical references acquired in his learning path.
Once defined the idea, the architectural project will be developed using these transformation rules and fitting two different goals: the environment identity in progress and the architectural quality that each student is looking for.Design approach:
1. IDENTIFICATION OF SUBJECTIVE OBJECTIVESEach student identifies his objectives belonging to his personal cultural references, subjective imaginary and wishes. He build his 1st Internet home page to propose his challenge.
2. IDENTIFICATION OF THE "WORLD OF POSSIBLE"Each student define the field of possible increasing complexity, of possible improving quality of the outstanding environment as the operative occasion of his project.
3. THE INTERACTIVE NOTEBOOK.Each student perform, using subjective interpretation, possible evolutionary codes that represent HOW an event can be transformed, gaining a possible quality. He do that abducting these codes from existing and interesting references.
4. PERFORMING 1st EVOLUTIONARY PARADIGM AS REPRESENTATION OF THE IDEA.The representation of the Idea as organizing paradigm to be used in increasing complexity and performance in the project developing path. The paradigm define HOW and WHEN the "transformation rules" can be used.
5. GENERATING A SET OF POSSIBLE SCENARIOS.The Idea is not realized, and identified, with a single result, but with a set of different "scenarios" of the same "idea". The objective is to gain the recognizability of the Idea. Identity is reached only through variations.
6. IMPROVING QUALITY WITH THE MANAGEMENT OF THE INCREASING COMPLEXITY OF THE IDEAA particular approach is to consider the existing exceptions as the catalyst of more complex stratification of roles inside the paradigm.The cycle 3-4-5-6 can be performed as many times as necessary, to increase complexity (not complication) and quality.
7. GENERATING A 2nd SET OF POSSIBLE SCENARIOS. Each student chooses one of his scenarios and develops it until detailed project. Each subsequent choice involving aesthetical and technological references will be defined running again, at different scale, the cycle 3-4-5-6 The peculiar aspect of this approach that operates using transformations and not forms is the real possibility to fit the identity of each town and environment.
The “Ideal City” is a transformation idea that inhabitants of a peculiar site thinking how, for example, the lake of Como will be more “Lake of Como” then before. And this “increasing Identity” id the theme of Design Studio Lab A.This Design approach is developed in the design activity of the Design Studio Lab A and with the participation to the 9th Generative Art international conference, GA2006, that will be held in Politecnico di Milano University the 13-14-15 December 2006. As the last GA events many international architects, designers, scientists will contribute with their experience in Generative Approach. The language of the conference is English. (Look at hundred of papers at www.generativeart.com).
Teaching structure
Each student will communicate his work in progress using his home page inside www.generativedesign.com website. This page will be upgraded each two weeks and will be valuated in progress during the Lab. This for a transversal and operative communication and for a synergy between students and teacher during the Lab.Students can present at the international exhibition of GA2006 (13-14-15 Dec. 2006) their work in progress in way to have further valuations and suggestions from international engineers, architects and designers before the final presentation of their projects.
Bibliography
In English:
1.C.Soddu, “Milan, Visionary Variations. Futuristic meta-codes for Milan’s Identity”, Gangemi Publisher. 2005
2. www.celestinosoddu.com, where is possible to find, all in English, papers, movies of lectures of Celestino Soddu, projects and images of architectural exhibitions in Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Hong Kong and Shanghai.
3. www.generativedesign.com where is possible to find the teaching activity and master degree thesis of the students of C.Soddu (in Italian and in English)
4. www.generativeart.com the site of Generative Art Conference with hundred of papers. Particularly, the 8 papers of Celestino Soddu (one each year from 1998 to 2005) explain the methodological generative approach to design used in the Lab.