We started looking for inspirational graphics that allowed us to generate a pattern according to the constraints.

A design based on abstract diagrams and Pre-Columbian mythological animals is our model to explore and create that unknown connection between multiple tiles, as in tile Dali, our example as a starting point.

Having a mosaic depicting a suggestive shape, but the uncertainty of what the shape is going to be after the accommodation of the tiles is a mental-unexpected game product of the positioning and abstraction.

Renata de Castro | Asif Rahman | Gustavo Triana

Our line of thought was to design a joint, which had the ability to move within itself and control the motion of the resultant structure and not just provide the structural support. The exploration trials were of the various possibilities in which the motion of the joint was the result of the structure to be designed and not the structure as the resultant of the joint.

In the final design, the bending properties of the pipe were used in the form of a circle that gives the circular form to the entire structure. The 3D printing technology gave us the chance to explore Joints which could result in dynamic changes in the form of the structure.

A flat disk opening out into a complete cylindrical structure.

Our tower has finally been erected!

Our series of crosses stacked up on top of each other are successfully interlocking through a series of bending profiles and locking joints. From the beginning of the design process we placed a heavy emphasis on maximising our material sheets, whilst minimising cut times and wasted material. We tested many locking configurations with respect to cut sizes, experimentation with bending, and identifying stable forces. As each cross interlocks with the cross below it, two side of each face bend in opposite directions to accommodate for the insertion of the flat piece slits cut into it. We started at a width of 19cm at the bottom, and tapered the structure up to 8cm at the top. The connection to the base was solved by creating an orthogonal grid which allows the cross to anchor into securely. The structure reaches a total height of 3.35 metres!

Renata de Castro Lotto – Ramin Shambayati – Richard Aoun