ARCHT-5070-2: Advanced Studio DC -Bamboo Tectonic: From Nature to Computation
Fall 2025
- Subject: Architecture
- Type: Studio
- Delivery Mode: In-Person
- Level: Undergraduate
- Course Dates: September 02, 2025 — December 15, 2025
- Meetings: Mon/Thu 12:15-05:45PM, Double Ground - D119
- Instructor: Negar Kalantar
- Units: 6.0
- Enrolled: 9/10
Negar Kalantar
Associate Professor, Interior Design Program
Associate Professor, Architecture Program
Associate Professor, Graduate Architecture Program
Description:
This is a vertical studio combining undergraduate and graduate architecture students. Students may choose from a diverse range of options of study proposed by different faculty members. In general the studio options are grounded in a conceptual basis that invites theoretical and/or programmatic innovation. These studio options may vary from year to year.Section Description:Architecture today faces a critical challenge: global construction demand is rapidly depleting natural resources, and traditional building materials are carbon-intensive and finite. This advanced studio explores the intersection of computational design, digital fabrication, and material intelligence, with bamboo as both subject and medium. Bamboo—a fast-growing, carbon-sequestering, and structurally versatile material—offers an abundant, renewable resource that, if used intelligently, could contribute to material needs in construction. Some species grow up to 35 inches per day, making bamboo one of the most promising alternatives to conventional materials.The studio examines how computation and fabrication can unlock bamboo’s potential through inventory-conscious design, where diverse sizes and lengths of raw material are strategically integrated with minimal alteration. Computational workflows will allow us to align design intent with available resources, minimizing waste while maximizing structural performance.Through three projects, we will study three interrelated structural systems—weaving, reciprocity, and tensegrity—as a continuum of intelligent structural logic grounded in interdependence and force distribution:-Weaving| GridShell : localized interlacing, producing self-reinforcing networks that distribute loads efficiently.-Reciprocity: mutual support between elements, enabling larger spans with minimal material.-Tensegrity: balancing tension and compression, generating lightweight and adaptive structures.-Together, these systems illustrate how design computation, inventory logic, and material intelligence can minimize waste and expand architectural possibilities. Methodology and Process-Computational modeling with Grasshopper, scaling from foundational exercises to complex structural logics.-Hands-on experiments and prototyping-Exploration of material efficiency and sustainability, analyzing how design choices affect consumption and reuse.-Collaboration with experts in computation, structural engineering, and fabrication.-Iterative process: from small-scale prototypes to medium-scale fabricated structures.-Workshops and lectures with international guests: Alison Grace-Martin (weaving and bamboo), Riccardo La Magna (KIT), Simon Schleicher (UC Berkeley), Mahdiyar Esmaeilbeigi (University of Calgary).Learning Outcomes-Understand bamboo’s structural and material properties as drivers of design.-Experiment with active material behavior across weaving, reciprocal, and tensegrity typologies.-Develop strategies for assembly structural systems.-Gain proficiency in computational workflows that connect digital models to fabrication logics.-Produce medium-scale prototypes that integrate computational design and material intelligence.
Pre-Requisites and Co-Requisites:
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