COURSE SECTION DESCRIPTION:The studio will explore speculative futures for the western section of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. Similar to the recently replaced eastern section, the western bridge will soon become obsolete. Instead of tearing it down, the studio will explore the reuse of the bridge’s “East Cut” superstructure as a social, cultural and ecological catalyst for the region. We will explore the not-so-distant future (~100 yrs from now) where the collective forms of architecture, cities and landscapes are informed by emerging technologies, robotic automation, artificial intelligence and other disruptive forces in ecology and climate, to name just a few.     The Cloud City studio will radically rethink how the Bay Bridge could be re-utilized in the future. Could the bridge become a site for radical architectural and ecological experimentation? Could it be a sanctuary or refuge for people, plants or animals? Could it become a public space, a place that bridges communities, inspires awe, ritual or meaning?  The studio will begin by exploring computationally derived “clouds” including aggregate and cellular forms found in nature. These spatial form-making experiments will then be combined with “collective” program elements: parks, community spaces, edible gardens, shared spaces for living, working, farming, collaborating and leisure spaces. These new combinations will serve as the building blocks for a larger visionary project.  What are the new possibilities for integrating non-traditional urban design, art, technology, ecology, architecture, landscape, experimental modes of participation and collaboration, inclusion and public discourse? After surviving a year marked by social isolation, division and inequality, how can visions for the new Bay Bridge suggest a way forward for the city, region and civilization itself? The studio will utilize advanced computation design, visualization and fabrication tools. As a method of exploring and iterating through many possible futures, we will emphasize the use of parametric modeling, simulation, and AI softwares, alongside the use of the Digital Craft Lab’s Kuka robot and other resources. The studio will allow students to physically engage CCA’s 3d printing resources, digital fabrication tools and related technologies.“The future is already here – it's just not evenly distributed.”  ― William Gibson“Empires of the future will be empires of the mind.” ― Winston Churchill
“The bridge, behind him now, perhaps forever, is a medium of transport (to) become a destination…He has glimpsed the edges of a life there that he feels is somehow ancient and eternal. Apparent disorder arranged in some deeper, some unthinkable fashion..” ― William Gibson, All Tomorrow's Parties‎ (The Bridge Trilogy)

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