In this tiled surface design, the pathways channeling water tangentially branch off 3 (repeated) closed loops. Each of these 3 geometric loops are radially-symmetrical about a combinatory corner of the original hexagonal tile. The three loops have 3 different scales of visual prominence. In the least prominent of the 3, the loop becomes secondary to the web of tangent paths surrounding it.

The tool paths of the CNC routing bits are individually legible, but explicitly follow the primary geometries (a technique similar to those of Intaglio engraving, where the shape of the tool is exploited to lend varying degrees of sharpness or softness to the design).

In the design process we aimed to experiment with different types of assembly. Each rode finishes with a sphere which arrives to a central assembly point.

The “gathering” joint’s outline is shaped in a way to have all the spheres inserted and let them move in all directions. Additionally, underneath the board (standing on 2cm blocks) there are wheeled-joints allowing the rods to move on the surface. The rails cut in the board are keeping the pipes in the assigned tracks.

The structure changes from a tightly angled curves with a lot of tension and stiffness to more loose hyperbolical shapes, which rigidity is kept because of a refined twist at the base.

The concept for this tower arose from the vertical aggregation of identical pyramidal components at decreasing scales. The component itself was developed through the distortion of simple geometries to find opportunities for self-replication without the use of additional components. The slight distortion of the resulting pyramidal form creates multi-planar vertices that can be utilized for vertical expansion. A simple stacking method generated a tall tower and presented an intriguing combination of height and density.

In an attempt to uncover further potential within the component, we re-examined the geometry and derived an alternative ‘sister’ method for stacking the pyramids which increased the suspension between the components to achieve greater height while using precise notching on the triangles to create connections of greater strength against laterally applied forces. The resulting product is a combination of digital processing and precision hand modeling, and has a playful twisting profile due to the duality of systematically generated connections and empirically derived custom connections.

Joshua Ranjit Pio John   //   Miguel Angel Juarez Diazbarriga   //   Robert Douglas McKaye