Assignment 1

Reiser + Umemoto

By Allie Shabouk + Karrah Vila + Jazmin Smith

Design

One thing that is strikingly obvious about Reiser + Umemoto’s work is that it is unique. According to RUR, their work fits into one of two architectural worlds: one that is committed to investigation, enquiry and craft. They use these three principles to create their own tradition, as opposed to following the obvious tradition of the first world in which they do not belong. RUR suggest that they support the natural reality of architecture and express its deepest resources, creating architecture with its own version of “alterity”, or “otherness.”

“Their work adumbrates figures which come out of a shadowy existence and into a light not yet disturbed by reflection. The structures of their buildings refer to a melancholy, somber and yet deep, ethical awareness which suggests that architecture of the future will not emerge gradually from a contemporary technique, but will burst forth suddenly, fully dressed in its ever-melancholic armour” (Benjamin page 7).

The design process is similar to others’, that of schematic concept, testing, and development through plan, section and elevation. The function of the building and context are very important to Reiser + Umemoto. It has been said that their designs seem to be derived from the surrounding nature, with topology most affecting the design. Function plays a key role in how nature affects the design. The programmatic elements are heavily tested. RUR note that the design must be worked from a string of problems. One problem is that of formalism when it becomes indifferent to function. Time is also a problem when not considered to be linked to the project in any way.

The Shenzhen International Airport exemplifies the idea that even though we live in a technological world, it is not required or should not be encouraged everywhere. This airport serves its inhabitants according to their needs; it humanizes technology. There are spaces inside that are diverse but globally connected. With focus on structure, design and technology, RUR transforms the word “architecture."

Technology

In regard to practice it is not just the specific use made of technological innovations that is fundamental. It is rather that technology has provided the models in terms of which these innovations are to be understood, and, just as significantly, the computer has become a device that is inseparable from the design process itself. The developments of complex surfaces, the shifts in how topology operates have become the work of animation and computer generation.

The firm does all their drawings digitally, rendering buildings in their future sites, and creating 3-d models to do digital tests upon. Reiser + Umemoto use technology that is available to everyone, but they create new and innovative ways to use this technology. Their June 2008 Vector Wall, on display in the MOMA, used the laser cutter, but was imagined through the multidirectional patterning that the machine was capable of. Through this approach to fabrication, a standard material may transcend its dimensions not only in the x and y axes but also in the z axis, increasing its ability to accommodate environmental variables, and therefore increasing the variety of its uses.

RUR uses a new geodetic system in their work. The property of a geodetic system is to carry all loads along the shortest possible paths, hence producing a criss-cross pattern supporting members. This results in a structure that is extremely light and strong. It might even be called redundant. If some portion of the structure is removed or lost, the stresses are simply rerouted to the remaining members. It acts as the structural tissue of the building that has the capability to change and adapt. This is utilized in their Cardiff Bay Opera House, Wales. The invention of computer-linked design and fabrication has made this system more and more technically feasible.

Construction

Though many of their projects are conceptual, construction plays a major part in the realization of Reiser and Umemoto’s designs. They believe in embracing the incomplete as a way to articulate the function of a design. According to Reiser + Umemoto, finalizing a building stops its function from fully being realized. Attempting to force so much control over architecture makes the building unable to explore the potentially infinite number of possibilities a building can take on.

In the Yokohama Port Terminal, for example, Reiser and Umemoto used shed construction to fully emphasize idea of incompletion. The design called for homogeneity and uniformity toward one goal. In order to realize this in their design, a structural system that also called for homogeneity and uniformity toward one goal was needed. Shed construction allowed for the correct repetition and focus and that was needed. The changes that Reiser and Umemoto made to the basic 19^th century shed design enabled them to communicate the need for incompletion.

As far as materiality goes, Reiser and Umemoto use steel framing as their main source of structure. Usually this is paired with a concrete core and glass paneling. However, they occasionally break from these materials for something more unconventional. One instance of this is when Reiser and Umemoto partnered with Ove Arup and Partners on an installation called the Flux Room. This room was used to measure the changing effects of magnetic fields and was built with magnets, copper wire, styrene, fishing line and drinking straws.

Works Cited

Benjamin, Andrew. Reiser + Umemoto: Recent Projects. Great Britain: Academy Editions, 1998.