Animate Form = More understanding :)

The Animate Form reading is something I can understand and enjoy. The progression of mathematics has always fascinated me and the progression of computers and technology to adopt such mathematics is even more exciting. The idea of animation as, not simply motion but, the evolution of a form and it's shaping forces, is a very interesing idea, and one that I think many find hard to comprehend. I myself had to comprehend this definition for a second. However, with a farily comprehensive knowledge of computer applications and how they function, it makes sense for these forces to be the driving factor behind changes in a line or form. The mathematical basis has come a long way in computer software and the introduction of vector forces has provided a new way to look at complex geometry. I also would like to point out an interesting thought that kept creeping into my mind as I contiued on in this reading...I think that because of architecture's root in 'normal' mathematics, such as geometry and trigonometry, the early methods of design and documentation were limited to the knowledge of those areas of the subject. However, as more calculus and more complex mathematics are undertaken by studetns, and by the software, a different approach can and is being taken for design and production using these newer means. As well, the complex forms being generated by computers nowadays has been ridiculed by 'older' patrons of the profession who have been used to a 'simpler' set of rules and regulations with regards to design. This may be the basis for the arguments that computer and digital drawings are the devil! The issues Lynn brings concerning architecture derived from stasis also is an interesting and in my opinion extremely true point about the origins of architecture. That being how everything was designed in 2d or with one perfect picture of a street perspective...now because we can design in 3d and even use things like parametric modeling all while adding forces to conceptual fields to influence our forms, architecture can extend into a different, not necessarily a better, but different direction that is certainly worth exploring.

Issues of loading with reference to past architectural practices also brings up a valid point. We have always designed with structure to hold the building up, but not to keep it from falling over. After working along side structural engineers for a number of years, I now know the importance of a shear wall, and all of the fun things you can do to circumvent the issues that arise from lateral forces. Designs can take on interesting shapes when these types of forces are taken into account. However, as Lynn suggests, time and motion should also be forces of consideration in design. This avenue of architecture is one that can only occur with computer aided design. And it is this type of architecture that will be causing generational head butts for years to come. However, it is simply fascinating that you can plug in things like differential equations into a computer and have them influence a design form. And it just clicked to me that these are things we're going to be doing in this course...and that is definitely the exciting stuff. But can we really "release control of our design process to software?" I'm sure only some people will delve into this as I still feel that I am a proponent for drawing, computing, sketching, computing, repeat...yet I do feel that parametric modelling and designing with the forces of time and motion can be quite an exciting proposition.

Splines are another fascinating topic. The fact that we can recreate complex geometry by applying pushes and pulls on a system is nifty. Then when entire surfaces, which are combinations and resultant meshes created from these boundary splines, are created we have a truly remarkable conglomeration of computer software capabilites and complex mathematics. This surface can then be animated by simply changing the forces at individual points along a single spline, or even at the surface itself...The idea of having boundary conditions which can also be animate, which then react to and interact with the surface or otherwise already animate system is extraordinary. These complex thoughts are fun to delve into and are at the forefront of interactive design and animate architecture. I'm not sure I agree with Jenny, who Lynn quotes to have said "nature reveals an abundance of sculptured forms, and all of them, it must be remembered, are the result of vibration," but nonetheless this helps to push for a more animate design process if what we are doing is trying to perfect our design decisions. In the words of Karl DuPuy, "all the good sites are already taken, and everything has already been designed"...so what are you waiting for?