Speakers

A holistic new media approach that connects the physical design, digital layer in space and hybrid access for remote participants presents new direction how to think of spatial design. Meaning in the physical spaces, just as in virtual is primed by spatial qualities, storytelling, social experience and  agency. Through my experience in creating exhibitions, artistic interventions and showrooms, inherently digital but also physical spaces, I will reflect on successes and challenges in creating them. Where the techno-optimistic desire creates a demand for the new, it is the very old, human, that makes things meaningful. How can we appropriately bridge technologies in designing the physical aspects together with the dynamic, responsive digital layer, as well as enabling engagement and social interaction in space and across long distance?

The term “intelligence” is as overused as it is misunderstood. Artificial intelligence will solve our most dire problems. Artificial intelligence is a threat to humanity. Which one is it? Hard to tell. But I will report on attempts to understand what intelligence really is, both biologically and artificially. We study intelligent behaviour in animals and artificial agents to turn the tables in our favor.

Engineering biology offers significant potential for the fabrication of new materials and structures, however, it also requires new computational modelling methods which bridge across scales. The presentation will look at the conceptual and practical basis of computational modelling for the biological fabrication of materials. It is possible to develop computational models which bridge between the expression of DNA (nano-scale) through to geotechnical models measuring tens of meters develop new CAD tools which simulate engineered biological systems to fabricate novel materials.

While computational design and construction robotics generally result in faster and more efficient workflows, leveraging human agents in the process could be a valuable and sustainable goal. The research presented in this talk aims to unlock new possibilities for architecture und digital fabrication through the integration of collaboration and cooperation concepts between humans in combination with highly autonomous machines.

In this moment of entwined environmental and political crises, this talk explores the aesthetic affordances of radically reduced energy dependence. Proposing a blackout as a collective thought experiment, disaster rehearsal, and art exhibition or festival, it asks: what forms of culture flourish when the power goes out? Can we design a moment in which energy infrastructures are suspended to positive effect? To limit climate change, we must dramatically reduce carbon emissions immediately. Blackouts—planned and unplanned—are not merely moments of crisis, but also opportunities to reconsider our priorities. Art and design must embrace blackout conditions and help us develop ways of living well in low carbon futures.

Closing the loop through design and engineering. The consistent closing of production and consumption loops offers possibilities to end the loss of valuable finite resources and reduce dependencies on global volatile resource markets, prevent greenhouse gas emissions, mitigate the effects of the climate crisis, and support new business models and green job opportunities. Although much of the theory has been developed over the past decades, the implementation of global circular economy aspirations into local construction practice has only just begun. Currently limited by the need for data on local material availability and specifications, new construction methods and technologies, and circular business models, realizing the circular economy requires a fundamental paradigm shift in the way we design, construct and manage our built environment. The Circular Construction Lab at Cornell University drives and supports the development of tools, methods, policies and strategies of design for circularity to support this shift towards scalable reuse in architecture.

The development of technical possibilities and material science has undergone an unprecedented advancement: it is now possible to program the properties of matter, visualize its structure with precision and compute it algorithmically thanks to digital tools. These possibilities, combined with the awareness of the environmental crisis, the need to optimize resources and manage the waste of human activity, open up a scenario of unprecedent design. How to imagine and build, on these foundations, a material culture which aims to give a precise interpretation of its time and which is also respectful of the archetypal roots of our society? Some examples will be given from Material Balance Research Group.