The idea has been growing for quite some time now, and as a result of my current Erasmus-stay in Austria (TU Graz) I’ve gotten more and more convinced. During the two semesters of 2010-2011 I will focus on writing a thesis rather than opting for a practical design. It is however mainly the subject and defining its boundaries – what do I really want to explore and research? – which is the most difficult factor at this time.

The quest for promotors is not an issue. Both Prof. Piet Lombaerde and Kathleen De Bodt would guide me throughout the thesis-project. Kathleen De Bodt is currently working on a PhD at the institute in Antwerp on digital design in the architectural practice. Moreover, she teaches some CAD-related courses.

As said however defining the scope and boundaries of the thesis is at this stage the most complex task. A concrete idea is non-existant, and my current visions will probably be redirected when I have a first meeting with the promotors in February. Moreover there is the knowledge that it is impossible to make a thesis at the institute in Antwerp on no matter what subject in the world of digital architecture. Understandably too, it’s a small world and does not always result in realised projects, but in impressive imagery. At this moment however, I am thinking of two possible research fields to focus on.

In a first option the focus might lie on how digital design tools can be used to bring a certain aspect of interactivity to building facades. Such interactivity can occur both in the design phase and throughout the use of the building. The first scenario, in which the interactivity occurs when designing, I would focus on how the designer can shape a building’s outer perspective in function of environmental parameters: obstacles, elements that block sunlight from entering the building, visually important landmarks, etc. It should be noted however that focus will mostly lie on the design element, and less on the energy-efficiency and sustainability. Tools that will be researched would include Grasshopper, Rhino Scripting, Processing and ParaCloud.

A liberal approach of the previous paragraph can be visualized by the image below. The Twisted Twin Towers is the work of Lin Xie, as a design task for Responsive Aggregates (USC 2009), a course led by Roland Wahlroos-Ritter.

A second possible approach could be categorized under both Swarm Intelligence and Generative Design and might study how the aforementioned digital techniques might be implemented in the new urbanism. We notably see more (innovative) interventions in which the design and planning is heavily influenced by movement patterns and morphogenetic parameters and functions. Based on the outcome of these scripted techniques, designers tend to work towards a proposal which answers a certain urbanistic issue.

An example of such an approach is shown below. The work is part of the course Complex Morphologies (USC 2009), led by Roland Snooks. The design is by Marcus Xiaoqin Chen, Xu Shuang, Juhi Dhar and Nicole Marie Acaron-Toro. Influenced by some attractor points and obstacles a parametric artwork is oriented and constructed.

It need not be said that the last days are filled with researching both thesis options. It is striking how many conferences and workshops are organized in these fields. In December there was the Intensive Fields Conference at USC, Los Angeles, but in February there is Formations, organized by the California College of the Arts. USC, aswell as CCA and Columbia University offer a wide array of courses in this promising field.

Noteworthy is that a growing number of European universities already focus on digital design techniques. We are talking not only about the universities in the wide circle around Antwerp, but mostly ranging from Italy to Romania and other Eastern European countries. In that sense, the increasing number of foreign speaking visitors to this site (mainly from Romania (Bucharest University) and the United States (SCI-Arc) are remarkable. Since all additional insights and suggestions into my thesis-story are appreciated, this English version has been published. Feel free to express your opinion and share your expertise!