LookingAtNaturePostHansmayerHousing

Lately, I was searching for info on the L-System topic and it’s applications in the field of architecture. I was inspired by the great power it could give an artist. Power based on the simplicity of the growth grammar describing dynamic complex systems. Systems that seem to be so easely built by nature… The most part of the projects that use generative modeling, parameters, algorithms, L-Systems techniques look cool. It’s quite interesting to declare how a system looks like and have it modeled in a easy and fast way using generative techniques, obtaining pretty interesting final results….

But at the end, Do we have to use all this? Are we going to win something by using concepts found in nature? These simple questions could confuse one, if not prepared for them. The architecture in classic means is the result of four key factors: function, construction, aesthetics and economy. Each of these rules determine what would be the value of an architectural creation. That means that:

Value = function * construction * aesthetics * economy

Note that I’m using *(times), but not +(plus), because if some of the factors is missing (thus, equals to 0), then the resulting value would be equal to 0 either. We could not create a building that only provides great function but lacks a construction, neither a building which has only perfect construction but lacks function and is too expensive. Each of these 4 factors play important role and is inter-related with the rest.

LookingAtNaturePostPinkHousing

Well now, having that in mind…let’s have a look at the structures found in nature: they all are result of the evolution, they all have walked a long way of adaptation and morphogenesis, resulting forms that respond the best way to the needs of the corresponding organisms. During the process of evolution, the forms are optimized in a iterative way, the structures mutate to fit the environment, because the only one to survive is the one which is the most adaptive, the form which fulfills perfectly it’s function, has sustainable construction and achieve this at the lowest price possible. This form would continue it’s life, the others would disappear….

LookingAtNaturePostHoneyComb

Let’s have a look at a very interesting natural phenomenon – a bee hive. I would say that:

  • A bee hive is functional – The bee-hive form is based on axe-symmetry providing easy access for each bee, each cell is connected to a reservoir where the honey is stored
  • A bee hive is Economic – Do you know which is the most economic shape in the plane?…It’s the circle, which has the greatest area for the smallest perimeter. The same applies for the sphere in the 3d space in terms of volume. Now…Which is the most economic tiling of the plane done by a single regular polygon? There are 3 possible tilings: triangle, square and hexagon tiling. As you could guess, the hexagon tiling is the most economic planar tiling of the three given that the hexagon is the shape that is closest to a circle. In the past, billions of years ago, probably there were bees that lived in square cells but they vanished making place for bees with more economic hives
  • A bee hive is Strong – the construction of the beehive is quite durable. Between each cell of a bee-hive there is a small triangle, thus forming the hexagonal network of the cells. It’s proved that all these little triangles create great strength in the whole construction, as we all know that a triangle is a indeformable shape, widely used in engineer frames…
  • A bee hive is Aesthetic – nature is beautiful…..complaints anyone?.. According to Kant, Hegel and other philosophers coined the aesthetics discipline there are 4 main properties characterizing beauty: Harmony, Wholeness, Expressiveness and Measure. Measure is a property that states that everything should be such, as it should be… The nature and it’s creations are always in Measure.

The bee-hive example was to illustrate, that the problem of creating a good architecture is solved perfectly in many natural creations. Thus, by observation and experiment, we could try to use the same morpho-genetic rules to create sustainable, functional, economical, and beautiful architecture and in the same way insuring flexibility.