agustina alaines
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After receiving a full scholarship, she moved to Los Angeles (USA) to study the Master of Science in Architectural Technologies at the Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI_Arc), where she graduated with distinction and remained as faculty. Agustina has extensive academic experience. She is director of 4th year architure studio at FADU, UBA (Buenos Aires), and professor of the final project of the Design degree at the Universidad Torcuato Di Tella (Buenos Aires). She has also taught Speculative Architecture and Experimental Urbanism at SCI_Arc (Los Angeles), and Computational Thinking at the Universidad de Los Andes (Bogota).
agustina alaines
After gaining experience in renowned studios in Argentina and the United States, where she worked as Design Director and Project Manager, Agustina recently founded NAAR: her speculative architecture studio that investigates the relationship between ARtificial NATURE and NAtural ARchitecture. NAAR develops responsive systems that exist at the intersection of physical and virtual space, graphic and industrial design, science, technology and art. Her professional and academic work has been exhibited and published in shows, lectures, magazines, books, and digital platforms.
Born in Buenos Aires, she graduated top of her class as an architect from the University of Buenos Aires (FADU, UBA) and later specialized in Parametric Design (University of Palermo).
Agustina Alaines is an Argentinian-Spanish architect, designer and academic.
save the world. NAAR means NAtural ARchitecture and ARtifial NAture. NAAR subjects NA sensibleture NAtural ARchitecturereason ARtificialmodifiers VELOCITY EFICIENCYtechnologycontext SPECIFICITY experience N.
Everything that is or feels natural is informed by its context, its time,
her creativity, her beauty, her efficiency, her adaptability and resilience.
its resources, its challenges.
It’s more than intelligence, it’s intuition. Natural intuition. believe in Technology believe that the function of technology is to Nature, so Nature can still
I
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I believe in Nature. I believe in her wisdom, her experience,
. I
save
8 projects
10TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 13
unexpected aspects of control
portfolioTransformationsneedtimeThetensionbetweenthetechnicalapproach,thearchitectural
Glorieta de Insurgentes, Mexico. Collaboration with Galileo Morandi.
15portfolio
Image Reading (AI) - study of agentes behaviour according to pixels information of drone images. Glorieta de Insurgentes, Mexico.
and human interpretation of data, and the material agency of some elements offers a blurry limit for unexpected aspects of a highly controlled process. An expandable system of buildings is approached at different scales—where the relationship of what is a part and what is a whole interchanges subject—and at multiple levels: urban, architectural, and constructive. At an urban scale, the project is generated by a 2D-designed process of image reading that decompresses spatial graphic information and determines the outlines of intervention. Immediately after, at an architectural scale, those perimeters are transformed into volumes. The tensions and hidden directions inside them are materialized by a repetitive component that offers a rich gradient of void-solidity and textures. Finally, when approaching the fabrication— either for a multi-material 3D-printing simulation or real construction speculation—the support material needed in order to build the permanent structure becomes a part of the design. Instead of removing it, a slow process of natural dissolution is appreciated; the building will continuously re-propose itself from a formal and programmatic point of view.It’sthe non-control of the expected.
unexpected aspects of control
12TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 15portfolio
Image Reading (AI) - study of agentes behaviour according to pixels information of drone images.
Image Reading (AI) - study of agentes behaviour according to pixels information of drone images. Glorieta de Insurgentes and immediate context, México City.
unexpected aspects of control
Image Reading (AI) - study of agentes behaviour according to pixels information of drone images. Glorieta de Insurgentes, Mexico.
14TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 15portfolio
Master plan: intervention sites selection and connections. Glorieta de Insurgentes and immediate context, México City.
TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 15portfolio unexpected aspects of
2D to 3D vectors Lines to volumes to buildings. control
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Image Reading (AI) - study of agentes behaviour according to pixels information of drone images. Glorieta de Insurgentes, Mexico.
Study permanent and temporary
materials and structures.
20Slowbuilding unexpected aspects of controlPLA3dprinting+dissolvingacids. Study of permanent and temporary materials. TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 17portfolio unexpected aspects of controlPLA3dprinting+dissolvingacids. Study of permanent and temporary materials. TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 17portfolio unexpected aspects of controlPLA3dprinting+dissolvingacids. Study of permanent and temporary materials. PLA 3D printing + dissolving acids.
of
24TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 17portfolio unexpected aspects of controlPLA3dprinting+dissolvingacids. Study of permanent and temporary materials. Buildings volumetric studies.
26TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 17portfolio unexpected aspects of controlPLA3dprinting+dissolvingacids. Study of permanent and temporary materials. Agent behaviour details.
Vintersol is a 2.5 dimensional object-system, built with wooden cubes (voxels), interweaved through one of its axis. These voxels work as living cells, capable of adapting to external stimulus, collaborate between each other, and modify it’s own position in regards to the previous one. It’s relates as an experimental and sensitive fabric, capable of equiping a rigid material with fluid properties and infinitive growth potential.
ARtificial NAture Collaboration with Max Gabriel Pinto.
for Hello Wood vintersol
Vintersol defines itself in the relation between flexibility and resistance, and through it’s contorsions and the superposition of it’s sides A/B it creates an infinite numbers of architectural/livable/sensitive situations. The ribbon, in an almost inocent fashion proposes multiple micro-spaces, meeting points, shade, experimental furniture posibilities, reduces and expands scales, absorbs and intervenes its surroundings. There is no final design, just the process of construction. A living and infinite process that keeps all posibilities open, offering temporary impressions that are perfectly irrepetable.
28TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 19portfolioARtificilNatureLowRes.LandscapesVintersolis,andisnot.Vintersolisnotlookingtobeadefinedandfiniteobject;
on the contrary, it proposes a continuous exploration process that defies curiosity, intuition and it’s surroundings.
vintersol
32 portfolio 100%3Built in ColorFilamentVoxelUnder.s.s......3+LengthWidthAreaVolumeWeightWeight/m²Possibilitie 100%2 portfolio R.2,56 H.3,74 b2 100%3 100%1 Built in 5 1/2 days Under . . . . 35ºC Voxels . 10.000 Filament . 1.400 Colors . . 3 + gradient Length 30 Width . . Area . . . . 30 Volume .0,93 Weight 510 Weight/m² 17 kg/ Possibilities . 100%2 33%150% vintersol TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 23portfolio R.2,85 R.1,33 R.2,56 H.0,81H.3,74 H.0,46 H.0,12 H.0,75 H.0,69H.0,52 a1 a1 b1 a1 a2 a2 a3b2b1 R.1,67 33%2 33%3 100%3 100%1 Built in 5 1/2 days Under 35ºC Voxels 10.000 Filament 1.400 m Colors 3 + gradients Length . 30 m Width 1 m Area 30 m² Volume .0,93 m³ Weight . 510 kg Weight/m² 17 kg/m² Possibilities ∞ 100%2 33%1 33%250% 50% 84kg. vintersol
34 portfolio vintersol Knitting guide. Transforming wooden voxels in a collaborative portfolio vintersol Transforming wooden voxels in a collaborative fluid system. Knitting guide instead of blueprints. Since we were not looking for a specific/static result, but a system with open possibilities. TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 23portfolio R.2,85 R.1,33 R.2,56 H.0,81H.3,74 H.0,46 H.0,12 H.0,75 H.0,69H.0,52 a1 a1 b1 a1 a2 a2 a3b2b1 R.1,67 33%2 33%3 100%3 100%1 Built in 5 1/2 days Under 35ºC Voxels 10.000 Filament 1.400 m Colors 3 + gradients Length . 30 m Width 1 m Area 30 m² Volume .0,93 m³ Weight . 510 kg Weight/m² 17 kg/m² Possibilities ∞ 100%2 33%1 33%250% 50% 84kg. vintersol Construction of a collaborative fluid system with wooden 5x5cm voxels.
38 TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding portfolio vintersol TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 29portfolio vintersol vintersol Spontaneous uses and functionalities. System and color transition details.
portfolio vintersolvintersol II for Raimondi fashion store
vintersol II
44 Fabrication. vintersol II
46TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022
The L.A. River is (was) a natural river that was canalized in 1938 after provoking large floodings in the city of Los Angeles. Today it’s the longest canalized river in the world; one 50-mile-long line of concrete that needs immediate attention in order to become something more than a concrete gutter. This proposal consists of two fundamental points: 1. to step down the current steep bording slopes and, 2. to break the straight border of the channel to create “lakes”. These interventions allow to re-purpose the speed of circulation and the activities that both, the visitors and the water itself, propose to this new destination. Depending on the water level, the various elevated steps and terraces of the river offer constantly evolving color, program and artificial landscape.
in 1938 after provoking large floodings in the city of Los Angeles. Today it’s the longest canalized river in the world; one 50-mile-long line of concrete that needs immediate attention in order to become something more than a concrete gutter. This proposal consists of two fundamental points: to step down the current steep bording slopes and to break the straight border of the channel to create “lakes”. These interventions allow to re-purpose the speeds of circulation and the programming of both the visitors and the water itself. Depending on the water level, the various elevated steps and terraces of the river offer constantly evolving color, program and artificial landscape. This is an Artificial Nature proposal for a natural element, water, that becomes the subject of design instead of a problem to solve.
ARtificial Landscape
L.A. river
portfolioARtificilNAturewatersystemsTheL.A.Riveris(was)anaturalriverthatwascanalized
This proposal consists of two fundamental points: to step down the current steep bording slopes and to break the straight border of the channel to create “lakes”. These interventions allow to re-purpose the speeds of circulation and the programming of both the visitors and the water itself. Depending on the water level, the various elevated steps and terraces of the river offer constantly evolving color, program and artificial landscape. This is an Artificial Nature proposal for a natural element, water, that becomes the subject of design instead of a problem to solve.
Google Maps views intervention looking to transform the straight lines of the train tracks and channel into a new elevated platform and a more natural water flow.
48TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 portfolio L.A. river
ARtificil NAture water systems
2D Digital paintings.
The L.A. River is (was) a natural river that was canalized in 1938 after provoking large floodings in the city of Los Angeles. Today it’s the longest canalized river in the world; one 50-mile-long line of concrete that needs immediate attention in order to become something more than a concrete gutter.
50TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 33portfolio L.A. Digitalriver“paintings”. Google Maps views intervention looking to break the water flow and stright unnatural lines.
52 Top view.
Elevated pedestrian platform over traintracks, natural water pools and steps.
54 Aerial.
Elevated pedestrian platform over traintracks, natural water pools and steps.
View from 4th Street Bridge.
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Elevated pedestrian platform over traintracks, natural water pools and steps.
58 foldable fields
Based on origami principles, which are present in all kind of natural structures, this project aims to develop a self-standing module that offers different programmatic and landscape possibilities: flooring, walkable artificial topographies, shelters.
When the units are completely open (unfolded) they lay flat, this allows them to be stacked and, consequently, also allows for a very easy transportation. Because of this, the units can be used as an intervention of urban public spaces (like plazas and parks) but also as temporary shelters in cases of natural disasters or social emergencies. The cells can live on their own or be multiplied to develop an expandable system that offers natural light entries in between the units. Modular installation.
60 foldable fields Origami studies.
62 foldable fields Parametric studies.
64 foldable fields System studies.
66 foldable fields System studies.
68 foldable fields TOP VIEW 100 % UNFOLDED 100 % FOLDED60 % FOLDED30 % FOLDED AXONOMETRICELEVATION System studies.
70 foldable fields 951 2 109843256711106 1137 1284 Natural light studies.
72 foldable fields Natural light studies.
74 foldable fields Function/program studies. FLOORINGTOPOGRAPHYSHELTER
76 foldable fields Interior views.
Floor plan.
Floor plan.
82 foldable fields
Temporary shelters in cases of natural disasters or social emergencies.Intervention of of natural landscapes or urban public spaces.
84TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 39portfolioFrommicroscopetomacro-scopes“Thereisnoneedtoinventanything.Justlookforananimal, a plant or a microorganism that already does it in the natural world.”
cellular scope
Collaboration with Galileo Morandi.
We started by studying the graphic behaviour of human cells under the electronic microscope (histological sections) and vectorizing them. Then it was decided to computationally “optimize” the cells taking into consideration their color, size, position, and neighbors to use their structural intelligence to create the top view of an artificial Whilelandscape.trasnforming microscopic cells into urban elements, we parametrically interpreted the relationship between area and weight into the different heights of a shadow pavillion. Areas of originally the same color and graphic characteristics will now share the same architectural functions and proposals. Nature grows its own structure.
cellular scope
86TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 41portfolio cellular scope
_ open
Vectorization of human cells, histolical sections. Human cells optimization (if possible). Human histological sections under the electronic macroscope. sourced from the internet.
Vector
Vectorization of human cells, histolical sections. Human cells optimization (if possible). and color studies of cells graphic behaviours.
88TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 41portfolio cellular scope
90TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 41portfolio cellular scope Vectorization of human cells, histolical sections. Human cells optimization (if possible). Vector studies optimization.
92TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 45portfolio cellular scope2D1/2to3DGrowth 2D to 3D spatial interpretation: growth.
94TAB Tallinn Architecture Biennale 2022 Slowbuilding 47portfolio cellular scopePowderprinted3dmodel. 41 scope Vectorization of human cells, histolical sections. Human cells optimization (if possible).
Top view system studies.
102 architectural nature
104 architectural nature
106 architectural nature
108 agustina alaines agustina@naar.com.ar@naar_lab+13239755122