Representing Pasts – Visioning Futures

Abstract

Unique moments of intense clarity, purpose, and means in the history of architecture produced singularly complex material results in the built environment. Often a function of cosmological considerations, these environments generated moments of highly expressive material culture. The Nasrid architectural finishes in Granada, Spain are an example. The intricate geometry, patterns and tracery present in stone, plaster, carpentry, and wood material are imbedded with cosmological precepts. This paper explores cosmologically inspired architectural works in design which can be applied to new design explorations. To do so, the research will map the genomic data from samples of architectural material and translate the data into generative computer code. This information will be collected and developed into generative computer coding utilizing algorithmic generative modeling and scripting (Rhino, grasshopper, etc.). The project aims to analyze cosmologically inspired architectural finishes, map these findings into code, and consider new arrangements of code using generative processes toward new material expressions.