Various Media in the Design Process and Methodology

Abstract

The paper describes the mergence of traditional architectural design processes with approaches that rely on digital media and software for the creation of architectural space. The depicted projects are part of a ‘work in progress’ process, with a recent studio that is set up to apply the so far accumulated experiences. Within the projects, focus is on those design phases where the applied media and methodology is changed and where the back and forth between different media and the depth of their implementation is perceptible in, and / or has a significant influence on the design itself. Through a line of successive experiments, the paper explains the development of a possible method that utilizes a variety of today’s accessible tools in architecture, making use of phenomena that appear when changing from one tool to another. Goal is to avoid limitations that are existent by the solely employment of one media or method, and to understand the fusion between different media as an inspiring momentum to develop the design further. The paper draws a line from an initially experienced and analyzed design method over several projects in practice and academia to conclude with a possible design method that could be established successfully in both fields of architectural teaching and practice. Initial experiences had been drawn from professional practice, in which the digital realm was limited to a support device of the design process. The first project that is described in the paper, explored the employment of digital media as a possible tool to drive the design process in a broader sense. The studio setting was organized as a laboratory for the exploration of the change of applied media. Focus was on the influence on the design progress. The design method required of the studios participants was not exclusively based on an architectural program, but on an initial, very conceptual process with an artistic approach, based on personal experiences of each participant. This was meant to detach the students entirely from architectural processes and mindsets they had picked up so far. Parallel to that kind of an intellectual process, studio participants learned to handle Maya as the 3D modeling software of their choice. Both the technical knowledge and the artistic projects were merged in a second project phase, in which participants had to further develop their work by applying a very effective mix of various design tools. Using digital media as a parametric design generator, subsequent projects were developed. The task for the designers here were to decide what kind of algorithm could be applied to which process and when it was to be stopped for the best result. Applying such an automatism successfully to the design process, the employment of traditional media and methodology remained, to adapt the digital driven schemes to the required design task. The diverse design experiments demonstrate important aspects when merging complex design and animation software with traditional design processes. To achieve good architectural design results, all examined projects showed that traditional design methods with its physical models are hardly replaceable to its full extent by other media, but digital media are able to strengthen design processes and invite designers to explore new means of design work.