Jacob White Digital Fabrication and Design Portfolio 2020

Jacob White Resume+ Work

Jacob White

P: 248.345.4003 E: whjacob@umich.edu 20816 Taft Rd, Northville, MI

EDUCATION University of Michigan - Ann Arbor, MI

2016-2020

Bachelor of Science in Architecture _Major: Architecture _Minor: Art History _Current GPA: 3.86/ 4.0

SKILLS Digital Analog Rhino 3D Sketchup Project Fabrication Grasshopper+Plugins Blender Model Making Adobe Creative Suite Unity Hand Drafting Autodesk Suite ZBrush Research Writing

EXPERIENCE Architecture Intern Joseph Philips Architect, LLC - Plymouth, MI

2019

_Consistently delivered integral project drawings accurately and expediently _Researched and compiled property data and zoning regulations for client presentations _Optimized firm’s general contractor specifications and mandates for use in all future projects

Research Assistant

2016-2018

Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program - Ann Arbor, MI _Collected and studied classical maps of Rome to examine the evolution of its topography. _Composed a database of material regarding the architectural history of the Tiber Island _Constructed a website to house research findings with interactive elements fo visitors.

Graphics Intern

U of M Alumni Association - Ann Arbor, MI

2017

_Launched new alumni education portal website with a team of fellow interns and executives _Created and customized content image banners for each new article submitted to the portal _Streamlined content creation process for company to improve the speed of content upload.

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1 Luxon

2 Parametric

3 Aegis

4 Hilmir

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1: Luxon_Lamp Digitally Academic: Year: Materials: Processes:

Designed and Fabricated Lamp Fall 2019 Acrylic, ABS Plastic, LED Arduino 3D Printing, Laser Etching, Soldering Rhino, Grasshopper, Python

In creating a lamp with modern technologies, a distinct but simple base shape was chosen: the dodecahedron. The twelve-sided shape was constructed out of a 3D printed wireframe structure with panels of acrylic to serve as the main faces.

The printed parts were broken up into a set of corner joins and cylinder peices that connect them. Any acrylic pieces would be slotted into groves present in the cylindrical components.

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Geometric Notion

Calculated Form

Rendered Results

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Two main printing layouts were used in the production of the lamp. The first (top) was attempting to maximize the number of parts that could be printed in one batch, but this led to printing problems and inaccurate prints. The second (bottom) had printing lines that were much easier to work with in joining the parts.

The acrylic faces of the lamp are all uniquely etched with the same pattern system. The patten is essentially a voroni system offset into itself, and each face has different paramenters regarding the density of that offset and the number of cells itself. The acrylic panels were all cut and etched at the same time on a laser cutter.

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2: Parametic_Explorations Mini-ventures in Parametrically Designed Structure Academic Year: Fall 2018 Processes: Physics Engines, Visual Coding Software: Rhino, Grasshopper, Kangaroo, Photoshop

The main objective of this series is to explore a range of digital modeling considerations and techniques relating to parametric design. These are structures that are created based on a number of pre-determined factors (floor height, object weight, support density), that can be easily itterated upon. This produce a string of possible solutions instead of one static object

The first design builds upon Frank Ghery’s Pritzker Pavilion . The thin lines over the great lawn are multiplied to create a metal space-frame shell from which a light fabric covering drapes. Our parameters here are embedded in the physics of the structure giving us the ability to alter not only the pattern of the piping but also the weight and pull it has on the fabric. Thus portraying the weigh in its hanging from a seemingly weightless

Second in this investigation are forms that explore how parametric design can be integrated into commercial architecture. . More specifically, the towers created here embody colossal structures that draw their forms from iterative geometries . This is done primarily through two basic moves: a creation of numerous cylindrical members arrayed around each other, and the twisting of said members into an almost helix-esque shape.

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3: Aegis_Shield Surface Rationalization and Assembly Academic Year: Materials: Processes: Software: Contributors:

Fall 2019 Steel Sheet Metal Spot Welding, CNC Waterjet Rhino, Grasshopper, Meier Surface Projector Assam Al-Harhara, Jacob Pyles, Peyton Stimac

Tasked with creating a doubly-curved and planarized metal design, the group worked back and forth within our members to find a design that was feasable but still unique. The form we decided to fabricate ended up being a large curved shield based on medieval precedents. It was created out of several metal quadrilaterals that were cut and welded together into the final unit. The general goal was to learn how complexly curved forms can be planarized and brought into the real world through advanced fabrication.

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While the design and planraization of the surface was intricate, its was only half the battle. Fabrication of the design as a physical object was equally as challenging as it involved the use of several disparate processes.

Initially, the panels had to be nested and plotted in such a way that the WaterJet could correctly cut out the polygons (right) Each piece had to then be hand cut from the sheet (top), bent using a sheet metal brake, and spot welded together (middle) to create one solid piece.

Before finalization, the metal sculpture was also put through several layers of fine sanding and lacquering in an attempt to clean the surface from the waterjet.

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4: Hilmir_Relief Parametrically Generated Knife Cut Pattern Academic Year: Materials: Processes: Software:

Fall 2019 Museum Board, Basswood, Acrylic, Paint Zund Programming,Laser Cutting Rhino, Grasshopper, Pufferfish, Illustrator

Tasked with creating a new piece of wall patterning using parametirc scripting, my first thought was to move beyond generic two dimensionality and create a project with both depth and shape. From the onset, the goal was to build a unique pattern within an identifiable shape (a lion silhouette), and then extrude that back into space. The thickness of the piece would be built out of Zund-cut museum board that was then decorated and bound.

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The comprihensivness of this project lies in the marriage of both digital and hand fabrication processes in the fabrication of the design. Its complexity comes not from the specific parametric scrips that create the artwork, but the insurance that all machines and designs will align when it comes time to layer the artwork.

Digital Fabrication is not solely about the use of sophisticated technologies to create the designs of the future. It is more about the understanding that one has between the mind, the hand, and the machine that all should be used within the design process. Understanding what tools are better than others at certain tasks, and being able to switch between them fluidly, creates flexible processes.

Ma ch i n e s wi l l o n l y d o w ha t we tell th em to, its kn ow in g w h at to s ay t ha t s t h e trouble

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