On the 18th of June we had the Intelligent Cities | Emergent Territories Research Studio, led by Willy Müller, Jordi Mansilla, and Jorge Perea, with Jordi Vivaldi, Final Presentations. The guest jury included IAAC Academic Director, Areti Markopoulou, Academic Coordinator, Silvia Brandi, Dean, Manuel Gausa, and theory faculty, Maite Bravo; as well as Luca Galofaro, IAN+, Ioanna Spanou, UPC, and Juan Carlos Sanchez Tappan, Espacio Sofan.

The 7 projects presented, working in the the area of connection between the Port and Montjuïc, proposed the future of Barcelona as follows:

Surface on Demand – Ran Shabtay - a language, or a system that can be adapt anywhere any time, as long as the city has water sources and physical buildings. This system can be changed and adapted to any situation.

RHIZOME_Adaptable Network – Marina Lazareva, Igor Cegar, Tamara Ivanovic, and Teresa Lodoño - imagines a different city, a different era where a model of transporting people from city to city, in a way of adventures and experiences, is proposed.

Read More »

The Digital Matter | Intelligent Constructions Research Studio, led by Areti Markopoulou, with Faculty assistant Alexandre Dubor and Computational Assistant Carlos Bausá, had their final presentations on Wednesday the 17th of June 2015. The presentations were discussed with an all star jury international guests Irene Gallou (Foster+Partners Specialist Modelling Group), Ilker Bayer (Instituto Italiano di Tecnologia Smart Materials Group), and Carles Sala (Sala Ferusic); as well as in house members, Silvia Brandi (IAAC Academic Coordinator), Manuel Gausa (IAAC Dean), Maite Bravo (Theory Faculty), Eduard Cabay (Introductory Studio Faculty), Javier Peña (Design with Nature Faculty), and Aldo Sollazzo (IAAC Alumni & Noumena). Manuel Kreutzer (ETH Zurich, Materiability) was also invited but could not attend, although he managed to connect for a video review of the 8 projects!

The 8 project proposals tackle questions regarding Material Intelligence. Smart materials such as shape-memory materials, piezoelectric, thermoelectric or bio-materials able to adjust their properties to different environmental conditions, allow to programme buildings at a nanoscale, and open up a series of applications on an architectural scale and industrial applications. Furthermore, new composite materials that present preset combinations of mechanical properties or multi-functional properties of non-homogeneous materials in shape and composition across a wide range of scales bring forth the exploration of a shift in design culture, taking us to a new level of material awareness. Material Intelligence in combination with Artificial and Computational Intelligence, simulations, sensors, actuators, as well as with bio-mimetic innovations provide revolutionary ideas on growth, adaptability, repair, sensitivity, replication and energy savings in architecture.

Read More »

The Design with Nature Research Studio, led by Javier Peña and Rodrigo Rubio, with Oriol Carrasco, in the Valldaura Labs, was held on the 16th of June. There to discuss the proposals were IAAC Academic Director, Areti Markopoulou, and Academic Coordinator, Silvia Brandi; as well as Josep Mascaró, head architect of the Collserola Park; Elena Rocchi, Taliesin Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture; Maria Jose Marcos, Magic Arch; Relja Ferusic, Sala Ferusic; Jonathan Minchin, Green Fab Lab Coordinator; and Alexandre Dubor, Digital and Robotic Fabrication.

The many project proposals consisted in:

MethLAB - Giuseppe di Domenico, Nada Shalaby, Philip Serif, Yasmine Hamza – Proposes to use food waste for Anaerobic digestion, the process of degradation of a substance in the absence of oxygen in 4 major steps:Hydrolysis : the cleavage of chemical bonds by adding water; Acidogenesis: products of the hydrolysis to fatty acids; Acetogenesis: bacteria consumes precursors and produce acetate; Methanogenisis: break down of acetic acid to produce methane gas; finally proposing the Methanecus Wormacus.

Read More »

On Monday the 15th of June were the Self Sufficient Buildings Research Studio, led by Enric Ruiz Geli and Mireia Luzàrraga, Final Presentations. This year’s projects proposed an architecture that goes beyond buildings: Factories of the Future. These work as an interface between architecture and art, digital processes and technological material development, committed to using new technological developments towards digital fabrication and the development of a performative architecture, creating intelligent structures, within the scenario of Global Warming. The jury board included IAAC Academic Director, Areti Markopoulou, Academic Coordinator, Silvia Brandi; as well as IAAC Design with Nature Faculty Javier Peña and Rodrigo Rubio; Judith Leclerc of CollLeclerc; and finally Agustín Javier Sáenz Fernández the director of industry and transport at Tecnalia, whom also gave a brief intervention just before the lunch break on the role that robotic fabrication is taking in the logistic structuring of the industry, in some way a real live factory of the future!

Here are the 6 projects presented:

Ressurecture - Maja Czesnik, Alessia Tosetto and Shruti Ramachandran – proposes a machine that recycles the daily waste of a region and checks the surrounding landfills and water bodies to produce fewer but more efficient products that are sent back to the market, finally recycling, producing energy, and generating knowledge through research and awareness.

Read More »