Digitizing and Fabricating Geomorphological Processes
Workshop in Malta
The characteristics of natural erosion provide a wide spectrum of dynamic formation processes which shape the surface of the earth across a vast range of scales. These processes are based on the detachment, entrainment and deposition of material by natural forces such as water, wind and ice. During the workshop, students will explore the morphological and structural characteristics of these processes of step-by-step reduction and molding of material and will implement them as a design and fabrication tool for an architectural prototype.
The island of Malta is an ideal starting point for such an investigation. The characteristic landscape of the island originates from its natural limestone resources – limestone is used as the prevailing building material on the island and erosion and weathering shape the impressive limestone-formations at the coast of the island.
Students will develop an understanding of the material behavior of limestone through a series of manual and computational experiments. Based on the results of these studies, we will develop a fabrication technique for complex limestone geometries.
The goal of the workshop will be the fabrication of individually designed limestone – prototypes (scale 1:1). These prototypes will subsequently be analyzed for their performative and architectural potential.