A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
A platform for research: civil engineering, architecture and urbanism
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design
Although recent calls in digital fabrication acknowledge local construction methods, the “local” in this framework is either a passive recipient of technological tools or a passive source of inspiration. The difference between high- and low-tech is much more than switching from robots to hand-making, as the two domains represent equal (but almost contradictory) modes of imagination, planning and decision-making This paper aims to reflect on the possible contribution of architectural practice and technologies to support vernacular building crafts. It reflects on four experimental case studies of tile vaults made in collaboration between the master vault makers and an architect to push the technique towards new applications and approaches to resourceful construction. The paper shows that the link between architectural practice and local building crafts is a threefold dialogue. First, designers should engage with the complexity of craft by illustrating its processes, not products. Second, designers should work with local building crafts communities beyond formal institutional channels. Third, designers should include vernacular knowledge in the current research on manufacturing and prefabricating replicable low-carbon building components. These threefolds can be translated to methods to engage socially and environmentally with local materials and knowledge. “Leaving no maker behind” acknowledges the overlooked human dimension of local construction: working directly with makers.
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design
Although recent calls in digital fabrication acknowledge local construction methods, the “local” in this framework is either a passive recipient of technological tools or a passive source of inspiration. The difference between high- and low-tech is much more than switching from robots to hand-making, as the two domains represent equal (but almost contradictory) modes of imagination, planning and decision-making This paper aims to reflect on the possible contribution of architectural practice and technologies to support vernacular building crafts. It reflects on four experimental case studies of tile vaults made in collaboration between the master vault makers and an architect to push the technique towards new applications and approaches to resourceful construction. The paper shows that the link between architectural practice and local building crafts is a threefold dialogue. First, designers should engage with the complexity of craft by illustrating its processes, not products. Second, designers should work with local building crafts communities beyond formal institutional channels. Third, designers should include vernacular knowledge in the current research on manufacturing and prefabricating replicable low-carbon building components. These threefolds can be translated to methods to engage socially and environmentally with local materials and knowledge. “Leaving no maker behind” acknowledges the overlooked human dimension of local construction: working directly with makers.
Leaving No Maker Behind: Cultures of Tile Vault Making for Situated Design
Sustainable Development Goals Series
Thomsen, Mette Ramsgaard (editor) / Ratti, Carlo (editor) / Tamke, Martin (editor) / Al Asali, Wesam (author)
World Congress of Architects ; 2023 ; Copenhagen, Denmark
2023-11-17
19 pages
Article/Chapter (Book)
Electronic Resource
English
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