Pantheon of Wonder
Essay
The Science of Architecture: Transitory Objects
by Maria Lorena Lehman
Adaptive Architecture
Capturing Form
A recent exhibit at Vienna’s Thyssen-Bornemisza Art Contemporary Gallery is titled Transitory Objects where architectural forms unleashed a redefined way of perceiving architecture. Adaptive architecture can easily stem from such displays where the form is actually a moment “captured” during its dynamic process of mutation.
This results in merging both science and art to yield what we might later coin as the science of architecture. Here is a great excerpt about the Transitory Objects exhibit:
Ritchie, Oxman, Roche, and their colleagues split deeply from the finite, permanent, and utilitarian tradition of architecture. Not to say their end products are not useful or habitable. In fact, their structures are arguably better suited to the constantly morphing, impermanent, and aesthetically driven needs and desires of modern society. Rather than working with an end product or useful context in mind, they focus on the process of producing a structure that follows certain laws or principles. These resulting objects rise from computational models and algorithms whose inputs are being drawn from or at least inspired by some of the most boundary-pushing and abstract ideas in science, like quantum physics or the multiverse theory. (1)
When you think about architecture from this light, it really does unleash a multitude of changes that would impact everything from the architect’s design process to the occupant’s experience. As new technological innovations surface and new scientific discoveries are unveiled this adaptive architecture will truly revolutionize the way we live with space.
These types of investigations certainly do push the envelope — helping us to develop more innovative architectural approaches.
What do You Think?
Take a look at the Transitory Objects slideshow by going here.
What are your first impressions? How do you think such investigations can help architecture advance? Do you know of any other projects like these?
(1) Cline, Elizabeth. Building Without Walls. Seed Magazine. July 9, 2009.
Image Credit: ArandaLasch | Flickr
Maria Lorena Lehman has received the following awards and has been seen in the following publications: