Umbrella Structure - Revision 5 - layering

Incorporation of Blocks - The system is ALIVE!

Studying a typical rigging arrangement for a sailboat using several different types of blocks I have come up with a method of raising and lowering the eight sections of the parasite which will latch onto each post. I want everything to be operable by a single person and because creating that much tension in some type of material would be difficult a pulley system works perfectly because the amount of force required is distributed over the multiple blocks, therefore making it easier for one person to operate the system. All lines will run to a single end point at the base of the post using a cleating system, to be determined.

...I'm super excited...

Blocks, Rope & Cleats

Trying to get as in depth as possible for some of the research I've been looking at regarding different components involved in the rigging of a sailboat I have been able to scavenge some equipment from the Black Pearl - Thanks!!! A few different sizes of blocks, some different styles of cleats and some old rope will allow me to set up a small rigging system that will help me in making some of my decisions regarding the set up for the operating system of my umbrella system.

Essentially my focus is going to be specifically surrounding blocks (very similar to pulleys), which will allow me to create a system to control the functionality of the 8 sections of the parasite attached to each telephone pole throughout my site. I haven't decided yet if I want this system to be manually operated or if I want to incorporate electronic capabilities into the mix. In a way I like the factor of human interaction, reliance and control of a person operated system, very much like that of a sailboat.

Potential Points of Interaction - Drawing 1

My focus today was to construct a drawing which could be used as a tool for mapping interactions between the parasite umbrella structures. Using the existing locations of the telephone poles throughout the area I chose a particular one as a starting point and set an angle of rotation to the parasitic disc that inhabits the bottom of the post, therefore becoming the base support for the upper canopy structure. This positioning was determined by my desire for an adjacent post to become to next point of interaction for the parasite. My goal was to begin to connect nearby posts but in such a way that their point of interaction started to inhabit the existing space in some way. It seems appropriate to begin to leap across the roads as much as possible as well as form connections between posts by using as many of the eight given potential points on each as possible.

In some cases the connection point between poles becomes a very large distance simple due to the angle of projection acquired from the positioning of the disc surrounding the post. There are essentially indefinite configurations for the site because of the unlimited amount of positions allowed by the system that I currently have created. The pattern that I did end up with in the end was dependent on each choice and decision I made along the way starting with the positioning of the first disc. If one disc in the entire system was to be rotated even 5 small degrees the entire system would have a different and unique outcome therefore changing the inhabitance of the parasite or virus.

The wonderful thing about the site being able to essentially "change" is that my parasite creation needs to have the natural capabilities or instinct to adapt and configure itself to these conditions. If one telephone post was to be moved or removed completely some of the connections between the post in question and the surrounding posts would be lost. At this point the adjacent parasite would need to find a new point of attachment or be left to exist without that piece of its individual system.

I hope to use this drawing to begin a more 3D process of mapping so that I can better visualize the process of creating canopies / coverings between the points of interaction of the parasites attached to the posts.

Umbrella Structure - Revision 4

I have started to repeat the structural pattern that I have created over an area so that they can begin to interact with one another forming new opportunities that do no exist when they are single isolated structures. Connecting the poles will allow the structure to take on more viral characteristics, which works well with my original intents at the beginning of this semester. Tomorrow I am going to begin mapping the possibilities, in the form of a drawing, for formation using this technique.

Umbrella Structure - Revision 3

Umbrella Structure - Revision 2

Shade & Shadow

Sails / Shades in between

Working on the "post condition"

I'm trying to look closer at some of the forms that I have created and pick out a particular characteristic that can help me to evolve my form further. Currently I'm fascinated the point where to rods can be bent and then come together to be attached. My curiosity with attachments obviously is evident within this discovery as a lot of my focus last semester was surrounding this part of my machine.

I know that I need to deal with particular conditions throughout the site so to begin I'm looking at how I can attach a form to a telephone pole. Up to this point I haven't been relating my form from last semester that was highly inspired by Harry Bertoia's sculpture to what I'm trying to achieve, the two have seemed very disconnected. The inspiration for this first form is a direct result of some of the ideas that were presented in my walking machine but applied to a particular site condition. I will begin to develop this idea further as I feel that I'm beginning to tie ideas together nicely which is bringing more meaning and consistency to what I'm creating.

Trying not to effect the structural integrity of the telephone pole (only structural to itself, in that it can stand up, but not support anything else) I wanted to have another element that latched onto the post so that the wire form could then be attached to that. The ring structure mimics the forms that I was creating as an element within my machine and works nicely when applied to this particular condition also. This allows for the possibility of more or less rods according to what is desired or needed to support the structure. This ring would be a static element that would be consistent for other similar conditions throughout the site.

The plan is to have a reflection of this ring component on the top of the structure as well but this piece would have the capability of being dynamic and could slide either up or down the post. This would push the top "umbrella" like structure downwards onto the bottom rods creating a larger diameter / amount of coverage of below to above.

I feel this is really good progress in terms of where I think I want to go with the form. For the first time this semester I have managed to link the relationship of the above and the below, something that has been a constant goal for me.

Mast & Boom

In keeping with my research for the process & method portion of the studio I'm starting to become focused on some of the larger methods of attaching components on a sailboat, in particular the connection of the mast to the boom as mentioned in a previous post.

The connection between the two forms roughly a 90 degree angle, which is adjusted very slightly by the use of the vang or the mainsheet. Increasing the vang is effective when sailing downwind and the use of the mainsheet is reserved for traveling upwind. Although the connection between the two is 90 degrees the boom is allowed to swing, or circle around, perpendicular to the mast depending on the circumstances (ie. direction, wind etc.).

I've also been looking at methods of attaching sail like structures similar to those on a boat to a stationary object such as a mast, or in my case a telephone pole. Seeing as wind is a dynamic element the sails or fabric structures that I create must also be dynamic to a certain degree which therefore requires a joint which can accommodate and is therefore not completely static in it's method of attachment.

...questions...where to begin

- How can I stabilize telephone poles?

- How can I begin to use structure from my play experimentation to span from one object to another (telephone poles)?

25 tiny structures

I began documentation of my tiny structures and started to realize their true complexity. Over the weekend I will begin to analyze each one individually now that I have experience them as a whole to see that kind of opportunities each one has to offer in terms of form & attachment capabilities to different conditions that they may encounter. In total I constructed 25 tiny structures which are each unique and will hopefully offer different aspects & direction to my process.

I think right now the biggest piece of information that I will take from this first session of play is that if the right sequence of structural arrangement is combined it can actually be quite supportive. This is probably a round about way of me realizing how it is possible to build a bridge to span a particular distance without having any supports below but I'm happy that my experimentations are giving me cues.

The next task at hand that I hope to tackle starting tomorrow is using some of the mini structures that I have created to attempt to leap from one structure to another, I figure if I can make them self supportive without being attached to anything there is no reason why I can't use them as a bridge like structure.

I would appreciate any further input on a possible next step to take or criticism on what I have achieved so far.

"play" observations

I have been in total production mode now for the past few days making tiny structures at the suggestion of my critique earlier this week. It has been brought to my attention that I tend to make more discoveries when I simply play with the materials and question at hand rather than try to create something that I'm unsure of what I'm looking for.

"Play" has been interesting so far...and very frustrating...I was warned. I'm not sure in what direction that I'm making progress exactly other than I have the potential for tons of jumping off points for form, so in reality this is indeed my process.

Photos of my little structures will get posted tomorrow morning but as of right now I have made a few discoveries -

1. triangle = support - although this may be seemingly obvious a lot of my creations did not go well or were not able to support themselves because they did not contain a triangular shape

2. 3 is better than 4 - as I attempted to build my structures higher they all seemed to naturally develop a sort of base element, the ones that had 3 legs were more successful because the weight was more evenly distributed and the overall form seemed a little more forgiving than those which had 4 legs, as these had to be perfectly balanced and identical length and position

3. more height requires support - this is pretty straightforward, but it did depend on how I was making attachments. Attaching one wire to another by a single point didn't seem to allow there to be a strong enough connection for the next piece added to have enough support.

4. attachment of connections - when two or more pieces were attached to one another at any sort of an angle this connection had to serve several purposes. The connection must keep the rods from sliding out of the joint and also must keep the pieces from changing their angle of attachment to one another.

My choice of materiality for my "play" session was difficult because attaching the piano wire with this flexible wire did not work well because the two materials slipped when placed against each other. Basically I had trouble creating joints that kept everything in place, the angle would change shape the majority of the time until I braced the structure.

Pole construction

Mast & Boom

As a compliment to the studio this semester the process, method & theory course is allowing me to look in depth at a particular technical aspect of my project to develop it to a more refined state. Last week we had small seminar meetings to discuss a direction that would be suitable for research so that the studio would benefit as much as possible.

Because of where my interests currently lay in regards to the Institute of Lightweight Structures I have been encouraged to look at flexible fabric structures & extreme textiles, which relate to a lot of my fascination with Frei Otto. In relation to this, in pairing with my interest in connections & attachments I have been encouraged to focus my research in regards to Sails.

I hope to look at some specific parts in particular including the mast and its relationship to the boom. In addition to researching the larger components I hope to also look into some of the smaller pieces including brackets, cleats & blocks.

So far I have began my research in finding general overviews of parts and components to begin the process -

Locating Posts

Today I went back to my site for the second time this week to map out the telephone poles and lines which will become the substrate for the travel or spreading of the virus or viral form. There are several different types of poles which I will construct and have categorized as follows –

- Double top (both aligned) – minimal space between

- Double top (both aligned) – good amount of space between

- Double top (skewed – misaligned)

- Single top w/ both sides

- Single top w/ one side

- Pole without top

- Side bracing

- Single sided, double top – spread between

- Double top w/ single bottom

- Triple top

- Other

So far I will be constructing 27 poles which fall into the categories above which I will then run lines to and from one another enabling me to create a path of transportation through an electrically charged wire running between.

Clarity

Clarity & direction – finally it feels like I know what I’m doing instead of searching for a light in a dark space!

In the previous post I created a brief abstract which was posted on the Dedale page to give a general sense of where I am going with things, I will now attempt to explain it a little clearer…

The virus that I wish to inhabit the space (area), in Point Douglas, will have a supposed starting point which is in close proximity to the river due to the properties of water. I have been searching for an opportunity to relate the “upper” and “lower” in keeping with the characteristics of my machine last semester and after the last critique have found it fitting to make use of the telephone poles and lines as a substrate for the virus to inhabit and subsequently use as a method of spreading.

Essentially the virus will live in the spaces above us, which is essential to our lives in terms of communication yet is a space which we do not physically inhabit or go. Similar to my machine last semester the upper structure was a way of holding up the lights of the antennae, very much like the telephone wires transferring data. The virus cell, some sort of a machine capable of traveling along wires, will live on the lines in constant searching of a host in which to spread and begin the infection process, in the same process a disease would spread.

For a disease to spread the host environment must be suitable and because I have been researching joints and attachments it is fitting to declare this the criteria for inhabitation by the virus. Whether it be a building, an object or a piece of a structure the joint must be suitable for the virus to begin to inhabit. The joints that I am describing are elements contained in the portion of our world in which we come in contact with, the lower portion, opposite to the telephone wires. Therefore having a way to link the two would relate one to the other creating an opportunity to grow a world of inhabitance in between them.

I imagine this taking place by the viral creature inhabiting the lines sending out an infectious strand, in this case a cable or line from the machine, to attach to a suitable attachment and latch on. This would then begin the inhabitation process. The strands of infection, the lines, would become gradually more embedded and more securely attached by having many points of contact or fixation. Once the virus, the above machine, has become comfortable with its relationship to the host environment it can then begin to infect which would be a relationship between the two becoming evident. Again this is the relationship between the upper and lower worlds.

In this in between world is essentially the infection which I wish to take the form of a fabric formed structure much like the membrane of a cell structure, again in relation to the virus and disease. The skeleton of the structure will be comprised of the points of attachment and the lines of distribution of the infection, the cables. The fabric formed structure will grow from the viral inhabitant of the above telephone lines down towards the attachments below. These structures not only form a visual relationship between the upper and lower worlds that previously contained an unexplained existence between them but will also fill the voids between intentionally constructed spaces – something unintended for which has the opportunity to exist – again like the virus.

…hopefully that is somewhat more explanatory!

Viruses, Connections, Motion & Structure

To recap the past semester in a short summary I constructed a walking machine that allowed me to begin to examine the relationship between the upper and lower aspects of structure, experiment with fabrication in addition to connectivity and components, as well as analyze properties associated with balance and movement. My final product was an unbalanced system which relied on my interaction to create security but simultaneously created an interactive experience between myself and the machine that gradually grew into an obsession. My research focused on automatons, magic and magicians, Harry Bertoia and light.

…to get a better idea of how I’ve arrive at the following points in more than a VERY brief explanation please see my blog for my complete elaboration…

Right now what is running through my head is a parasite that exists above our heads inhabiting the unsuspecting telephone lines. Its focus is to exist by achieving balance as well as capturing it’s stability and points of rest by latching onto surrounding structures and connections, leeching off of what exists and finding opportunity. During its time of rest it begins to inhabit the space and grow into the area by creating new structure. This structure can be left behind, infecting the space, or raveled up again by the parasite and taken to a new host location. I hope to use tensile fabric structures, such as some of my inspirational research at the moment.

Currently my research surrounds the Institute of Lightweight Structures & experimental architect Lebbeus Woods. I am also focused on components of connectivity, balance, motion & adaptability.