re[in]spired architecture

This project is the diploma thesis of Douroudi Efthymia and Lantavou Maria, it was presented in February of 2017 in Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. The supervisor of the project was Voyatzaki Maria.

You can also watch a video of the project on vimeo at https://vimeo.com/215310679

In recent years, a new trend is observed in fashion with the most innovative designers to be architects. This is not a coincidence as both garments and buildings have common purposes: morphological, functional, aesthetic, and intent to cover, show off, protect and signify a body.An issue that concerns both garment sector and architecture is thermal comfort. Its achievement is necessary and nowadays the lowest possible energy consumption is seeking for it. We design a garment for the modern human, who wanders during the day in city. This garment can help him change environments with comfort. It is about a “microenvironment” around the wearer that interacts with the broader changing environment and helps to maintain the condition of thermal comfort This garment is inspired both in form and function by scales in nature. The form of living organisms has been optimised over time and depends on many conflicting parameters. The design intends to answer multiple questions. The main design axes are related to curvature adaptivity and thermal comfort. Size and shape of components that make up the surface is the first design parameter, affected by curvature and acts globally like scales. The second design parameter acts locally, so each component has the ability to open and close, influenced by environmental conditions (humidity and temperature).

The design methods deploy digital technologies. Algorithms are used to create a dynamic system that adapts to different topologies, geometries and environmental conditions. The garment is to be printed in multi material 3D printer. The entire surface will be composed of flexible material and the same printer, with different material deposition heads will incorporate at the same time smart material in components, that gives them the ability to move triggered by the environment. As a result the components open and close contributing to the cooling of the body. The experimental design procedure of this garment can be also applied in buildings, providing thermal comfort conditions to users, thus the title: «re[in]spired architecture».

The Board: