HKU's robotic fabrication LAB 3D prints terracotta brick enclosure

the robotic fabrication LAB of the faculty of architecture at the university of hong kong has designed the ‘ceramicINformation pavilion,’ a project on view at the bi-city biennale of urbanism and architecture (UABB) in shenzhen, china. the work is part of an evolving series, which aims to reconcile the material intelligence of vernacular crafts with the specificity and flexibility promised by digital design and fabrication technologies.

image by christian j. lange (also main image)

‘this particular iteration explores the process of construction, and seeks to find an appropriate level of automation suitable for emerging and transitioning economies,’ explains the project’s leaders, christian j. lange and donn holohan.   ’each of the approximately 1,000 components that make up the experimental structure is unique and has a specific immanent relationship to its neighbors. this approach allowed the complex construction to be realized using unskilled labor, over a short period, without the need for typical architectural drawings.’

image by christian j. lange

the project examines the ubiquitous terracotta brick — common in modern chinese construction — and explored its potential re-shaping through the process of robotic 3D printing. approximately 1.5 million lines of code were generated, with each brick containing an average of 1,400 individual target-points. the bricks were manufactured over a period of 20 days before the lightweight elements were shipped to the site and assembled into the multifaceted wall.

image © designboom

the project not only highlights the new possibilities for architectural expression, but also the capacity these systems have to change the way in which we fashion the built environment. the project, which has been designed by the robotic fabrication LAB of HKU’s faculty of architecture, will remain on display as part of UABB until march 15, 2018. sees designboom’s ongoing coverage from the event here.

image by christian j. lange

project info:

name: ceramicINformation pavilion
institution: robotic fabrication LAB, faculty of architecture, the university of hong kong
completion year: 2017
built area: 3 sqm
project leaders: christian j. lange, donn holohan
research assistants: mono tung, kristy chow, pamela maguigad
funding: UABB shenzhen