Dr Raymond Lucas to Chair ‘Modelmaking in the Digital Age’ Symposium

Posted on January 26, 2015 by Workshop

We are very pleased to announce that our own Dr Raymond Lucas will be our chair speaker for ‘Modelmaking in the Digital Age‘ taking place on March 9th. Ray will be introducing and overseeing the converse of our day to help get the insights we all want to get from our fantastic group of visiting speakers.

Dr Lucas has recently been appointed as Head of Architecture in Humanities at the University of Manchester and as such will have a close relationship with our workshop activities in future.

His involvement teaching at MSA and research with the Manchester Architectural Research Centre (MARC) however has been ongoing for the last 4 years so Ray is well versed in the active role our cause plays for our students.

Dr Lucas describes he teaching role as part of Manchester School of Architecture:

I teachÂ in the Manchester School of Architecture in a variety of roles. Â

In the recent past, this has included teaching in studio and coordinating the humanities for the undergraduate BA in Architecture. Â I have worked closely with colleagues across institutions in developing the humanities curriculum, teaching and coordinating the following courses: Architectural History: Epochs; Architectural History: Paradigms; Architecture & Observation/Graphic Anthropology; Agenda Building; World Urbanism. Â Further to this, I have taught in the postgraduate studios Continuity in Architecture and Intimate Cities and supervised a number of postgraduate dissertations.

The teaching ethos of humanities in MSA is important, and involves a close integration of the various humanities disciplines with design studio. Â Humanities in architecture is relevant to the process of design, be that in determining the survey and understanding of a site; understanding the context of a place, typology, practice or material; or as precedents which can inform today’s architectural practice. Â The second part of this teaching ethos is to deliver current research to students as much as possible. Â Whilst maintaining the structure of a foundation in architectural history and theory, it is important to move beyond the classicist surveys of the past and to exploit the wide range of contemporary research being conducted in Manchester School of Architecture both within MARC and our MMU colleagues.

We look forward to seeing you there!

Foster + Partners Join B.15:45 ‘Modelmaking in the Digital Age’ Symposium

Posted on January 19, 2015 by Workshop

We are pleased to announce that Foster + Partners will be joining our ‘Modelmaking in the Digital Age’ Symposium taking place on March 9th.

As one of the biggest architectural practices in the world, this presentation from Foster + Partners will add an insight into the ever present use of architectural modelmaking in projects taking place worldwide.

Additional speakers from Foster + Partners will be:

Gregor Anderson, Associate Partner at Foster + Partners and manager of the in-house Rapid Prototyping Facility. Gregor studied at the Royal College Of Art where he focused his research on all forms of digital manufacturing. On graduating, he was a key member in the development of Rapidform, the RCAâ€™s in house additive manufacturing unit. In 2008 he moved to UCL to set up and run The Digital Manufacturing Centre in the Bartlett School of Architecture, before joining Foster + Partners in 2011.

Ed Bartlett, Associate and Modelshop CAD Support Manager at Foster + Partners. Ed joined the practice in 2008 after graduating from the Arts University Bournemouth, where he studied Modelmaking for Design and Media, specialising in computer-aided design. He now heads up a team of CAD specialists within the practice, working on a wide variety of projects around the world.

We look forward to seeing you there!

‘Modelmaking in the Digital Age’ Symposium, 9th March 2015

Posted on January 13, 2015 by Workshop

B.15:45 Presents….

As part of our continued look at the role of Modelmaking in Architecture we are very pleased to announce our upcoming symposium event: Modelmaking in the Digital Age

The day will comprise of a series of talks and discussions around the subject of modelmaking in architecture, in particular the impact the introduction of digital tools has had on the approach to making and learning with models.

Registration for the symposium has now closed.

Confirmed Speakers for the event are:

Ken Grix,Â Architect and Modelmaker at Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios, Bath. Since 1999 Ken has been both the inspiration behind and creator of Feilden Clegg Bradley Studiosâ€™ concept models, design process models and presentation models. He became a Partner of the company in 2012, and the following year he achieved the great honour of winning the Lend Lease/AJ Grand Award for Architecture at the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2013 for his concrete concept models of the Festival Wing, Southbank.

Dr.Â Milena Stavric, studied Architecture at the University of Belgrade where she also received her PhD. Since 2004 she has worked at the Graz University of Technology, Austria. Author of Architectural Scale Models in the Digital Age: Design, Representation and Manufacture.

James Smith, Director and Head of Architectural Modelmaking at Amalgam Models, Bristol. JamesÂ joined Amalgam in 2000 having gathered model making experience across the UK for several years, followed by 3 years based inÂ Barcelona where he managed many high profile architectural projects. James became a Director at Amalgam in 2008.

Professor Nick Dunn, Professor of Urban Design at Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts.Previously studied and taught at the Manchester School of Architecture, Author of the international best selling book,Â Architectural Modelmaking.

The event will be chaired by our own Dr Raymond Lucas. Dr Lucas has recently been appointed as Head of Architecture in Humanities at the University of Manchester and as such will have a close relationship with our workshop activities in future. His involvement teaching at MSA and research with the Manchester Architectural Research Centre (MARC) however has been ongoing for the last 4 years so Ray is well versed in the active role our cause plays for our students.

The event will be held on March 9th in the Cordingley Lecture Theatre here at the University of Manchester’s Humanities Bridgeford Street Building. Presentations will begin at 09.30am and will continue throughout the day with Q & A sessions and general discussions around the subject concluding no later thanÂ 16.00.

Further updates to the event will be posted here leading up to the event.

Tickets are no longer Available

Registration for the symposium is now closed.

For those who have registered We’ll see you on Monday!

2nd Year Creative Constructs: In Isolation Brief

Posted on November 11, 2014 by Workshop

The last two weeks have been extremely busy in the workshop thanks to the 2nd year Creative ConstructsÂ briefs. By producing a series of models, each taking the idea to a more defined level of explanation, students are expected to demonstrate their understanding of aspects of structural design. These should include understanding of scale, junction detailing, overall strength of the structure and their ability to be repeated to work in conjunction with identical components.

Many of the projects we’ve seen for this brief have followed the trends of others in the group who have made a quick start. This has been an issue for latecomers due to the time restraints and capacity of the workshops both here and Chatham.

For students taking part in this project in future it’s worth noting the time involved in producing these projects. Many of you have been surprised at the amount of thought required to make your models a reality though really this shouldn’t come as a shock as that thought is essential to your learning. By taking the time early on to think about the different aspects of your idea and defining them accurately you can then take your information and apply those defined ideas to the creation of your model.

Without defined constraints you are simply guessing or making aspects of your project up on the spot which isn’t really helping you to learn anything. You should be able to explain the use of particular joints of construction methods based on research rather than their aesthetic or convenience to make as a model. There have been some interesting ideas appearing so far and I’m sure they’ll be more to come!

Scott

Fabricate – 1st year Project

Posted on October 20, 2014 by Workshop

Last week we were very busy dealing with the first real workshop-based project for our new first year students. Their fabricate brief took their initial ideas for an animal habitat a step further to refine the details of design and assembly.

Both myself and Jim agree that a major learning curve of this week-long project has to be in time management. Many students found themselves rushing elements of their projects as it had been left too late in the week. As was said during inductions and many times since – please come to see us to discuss how realistic your ideas are for the time frame. If you do this at the earliest possible stage in the process we can help to get the best results with your project and importantly – to get it completed by the deadline!Â

All in all it was a fun week with many interesting projects making their way in and out of the workshop. Enjoy your trip to Berlin and we’ll see you for your next project when you return!

Scott and Jim

First Year Fabricate Projects

Posted on October 15, 2014 by Workshop

Following their recent inductions 1st year students have this week been flooding into the workshop to advance their initial ideas for the animal habitat project. We have been really happy even at this early stage with the response from this year in terms of organisation and good practices when approaching making. Hopefully we can continue this for the rest of the year and beyond to produce some great projects.

Due to the high numbers expected this afternoon and Friday we would recommend that you get in early and consult us on what you need to do before starting. We may advise that you work from home due to the nature of your project as we cannot accommodate more than 20 students at any one time. Please understand this and try to organise your ideas efficiently so we can help as quickly as possible and you can meet your deadlines on time.

Materials Recycling, Saving the World! (and yourself some money!)

Posted on September 29, 2014 by Workshop

One of the most important habits we can pick up as designers and makers is to make the most efficient use of anything that is freely available to us. It is essential that we consider the conservation of materials and the reduction of waste from our projects in order to play our part in maintaining a broader sustainability for the future. The least we can do is to efficiently plan how best to use the material we are working with.

This can be seen as a hindrance to quickly starting a project but in reality, effective planning can help reveal more appropriate materials for a particular task as well as best use of those at hand. This saves money and expands our understanding of material qualities.

Before planning based on an infinite amount of material it’s good practice to break down your projects into components as a list or drawing which can be referred to when assigning materials. With this reference at hand we can decide on the most appropriate materials for each component or group of components.

An example of this might be all ‘green’ or natural areas of a site could be represented using timber against a coloured acrylic as the man made roadways. Knowing this we could separate those components and begin collecting materials that suit the required sizes.

Looking through off-cuts left from past projects it is likely you can produce much, if not all of your model for free by using these.

Using Sheet Material for Component Layouts

By working out what you need from a particular piece of material before you begin to cut you can get the most from each piece you use – off cut or new.

This applies to both hand drawn and CAD drawn components. Rather than placing components scattered around a sheet, tessellate and arrange them in a manner that gets the most out of each piece (See Screen Shot above for a good example).

This example from Abhi Chauhan’s project below demonstrates how a piece of laser cut MDF with effective component arrangement can get the most out of a sheet of material.

Re-Use of materials and model components

Before you decide to use new materials you can also look at the role of your existing works and rework them into new ideas as demonstrated in this student video made by Signe Perkone and Sigita Zigure who graduated BA Architecture last year. Whilst we are keen to record all work produced it is impossible for us to keep everything so by re-using models this way we are helping to do our bit to reduce waste.

Scott

1st Year BA Architecture Inductions

Posted on September 19, 2014 by Workshop

This week we have given a general introduction to modelmaking to the new wave of BA Architecture First Year students. We hope everyone who attended enjoyed their sessions and are ready to get making things this year.

If you have any questions get in touch.

More info about products and your discounts at 4D Modelshop can be found on their site atÂ http://modelshop.co.uk/

As there were several people who didn’t attend the inductions we may be holding catch up sessions one day next week but this is yet to be confirmed. We will keep you posted.

Enjoy your weekend!

Scott and Jim

1st Year Inductions and 4D Modelshop visit 17th & 18th September

Posted on September 15, 2014 by Workshop

1st Year Inductions this week This year we will be inducting each and every newcomer to MSA into the theory of Modelmaking in their studies. These inductions will be taking place in the workshop this coming Wednesday and Thursday and we will therefore be closed to all other year groups for these two days. 4D Modelshop Visit 4D Modelshop is one of the main suppliers of modelmaking tools and materials in the UK. They are based in London but offer and efficient web service allowing quick delivery to Manchester. Deliveries can be made to our workshop or your home address.

As part of these first year inductions we have been able to invite a representative for 4D Modelshop in the the building to demonstrate and display some of the materials available that will come in handy for your studies. 4D Will be set up on our first floor near the B.15:45 Exhibition and will be on hand throughout both days to all – not just 1st year inductees.

We recommend you drop by to see what will be on offer as there will be student discount opportunities on starter tool kits and materials samples so well worth a look.Â Scott and Jim

MSA Graduate Show 2014

Posted on June 20, 2014 by Workshop

This years graduate show at MSA is being held on floors 6,7 and 8 of Chatham Building at MMU. Find out more by clicking here.

Stunning hand drawings by Richard Coskie on display below.

The Processional Cities Atelier of BA3 produced an outstanding room display of their work. One reason this particular presentation was successful is down to the clear placement of each persons work and, being focussed round a central master plan Â model, where each project fits in relation to the area of study on the site.