INFINITELY LARGE – EXTREMELY SMALL | a translation project The Kaleidoscope House fall 16 | graduate design studio I Professor Pari Riahi
DESCRIPTION | The development of digital media has opened up the possibility of understanding the world in unprecedented scales. Through our screens, we are able to look into the minutest particles of a matter, or marvel at an infinitely far and large object. Such acute observations lead to extraordinary perceptions of the world and suggest new avenues for design. The studio makes use of current digital tools and techniques to investigate an array of natural phenomena and artificial apparatus by exploring the theme of “Curiosity Cabinets”. THEME | ”Curiosity Cabinets” were developed from the 1500s onward and contained extraordinary objects of naturlia and articficialia. The arrangements of these objects were to recreate microcosms capable of reflecting the outside world and augmenting one’s understanding and appreciation of it. By selecting among a series of precedents, the studio investigated the logic and structure of natural or man-made constructs and the interrelationships of the container and the contained in order to create a series of architectural interventions in various scales. PROJECT(s) | The studio design sequence is structured around three projects of significantly different scales. Exploring the theme of Curiosity Cabinets, each student was asked to research and reflect on a phenomena that fascinates him/her to first translate such wonder into a series of six abtract digital drawings. The second phrase further explored 3D potential of these drawings, pushing their metamorphosis to identify a central concept. The last and ultimate part of the studio focused on creating an architectural space, pertinent to the specific theme of each individual’s explorations at the scale of a public edifice in the city. The ultimate project encompassed a wide array of actions: from analysis to interpretation, from translation to creation and from understanding to making.