Title: The current state of autography

Authors: Kostas Grigoriadis

Addresses: Architectural Association (AA) School of Architecture, 36 Bedford Square, London WC1B 3ES, UK

Abstract: As the practice of using notations to translate from two to three-dimensions is gradually being replaced by the direct, autographic relaying of building information digitally, the separation between designing and building is diminishing. Key to lessening further this division are heterogeneous materials, the imminent use of which can instigate the gradual superseding of building components and effectively tectonic construction. Pre-empting their anticipated widespread application, main point syntax is presented of the expected changes that will occur in architecture as a result. Following this, a novel design method of using particle system elements to simulate the fusion of materials is deployed in the redesign of a building facade element through a multi-material. The ensuing focus is the fabrication of the element, which is performed by converting material data from the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) program into a 3D-printable format. The current technical limitations of architectural autography are discussed through this workflow.

Keywords: autography; allography; architecture; digital design; multi-materials; functionally graded materials; particle system elements; computational fluid dynamics; CFD; rapid manufacturing; 3D printing; design theory.

DOI: 10.1504/IJRAPIDM.2018.092902

International Journal of Rapid Manufacturing, 2018 Vol.7 No.2/3, pp.277 - 294

Received: 04 May 2017
Accepted: 05 Oct 2017
Published online: 02 Jul 2018 *

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