Press "Enter" to skip to content

Critical Mass Posts

G30 Summer Pavilion Work in Progress 04

Published 2013年8月10日 by T—ADS

With samples of components produced by Takenaka-san, we had a meeting with the pavilion team from Obayashi Co. The full-scale version of G30 Summer Pavilion will be a network of compression components made of thin sheets of stainless steel, which are welded and inflated using robotic manufacturing machines available at local fabrication shops near the Toyota Motor’s factory.

2nd year studio review with Janette Kim

Published 2013年8月9日 by T—ADS

It was a busy day – We had multiple events simultaneously in our lab:  a progress review of our pavilion construction with staff from Obayashi Co, 2nd year studio review with Janette Kim, and a meeting for 2nd year book editing. After the studio review, Janette gave a lecture on her recent work, Room for Debate. With the 1:3 scaled model in the middle of our lab space, our lab was quite active all day. 


2013 Obuchi Lab Design Thesis Books have arrived

Published 2013年8月7日 by T—ADS

Design teams at Obuchi Lab have compiled 2 years of their design research work into a project document book which will be submitted to the Department of Architecture for their final presentation. The document contains one team research book and a series of individual research books.  

G30 Summer Pavilion Work in Progress 03

Published 2013年8月6日 by T—ADS

In order to test the accuracy of structural simulations of shell-formed tensegrity structure, we have built 1:3 scaled model. The process of assembly remained the same as our last model, with multiple ropes to hoist the entire structure in one go. The structural simulations have been a lot more complicated than what we expected; we are collaborating with Prof. Sato and structural engineers from Obayashi Co. 




Lecture by Kristof Crolla

Published 2013年8月6日 by T—ADS

Building Simplexity:  The Expansion of Digital Design into “Contractor Space”


Lecture by Kristof Crolla
Date: 8/9, 2:30 – 3:30 pm
Location: Obuchi Lab, Room 416

Digital design techniques have radically expanded the “design solution space” available to architects. The speed with which the possibilities for “built” architecture expand, however, is slowing down, in spite of continued advancements in design software development and the dissemination of evermore user-friendly digital design tools. The increasing dissociation between virtual and built environments lies at the foundation of this slowdown. Using case studies from his design practice, Kristof Crolla will discuss the digital paradigm in the realities of “contractor space” in order to continue to expand the “buildable design solution space”.

Kristof Crolla is a licensed architect, Assistant Professorship in Computational Design at the Chinese University of Hong Kong, and founding partner of the architecture practice “Laboratory for Explorative Architecture & Design Ltd.” (LEAD). He studied and taught at the Architectural Association School of Architecture in London and worked as Lead Architect for Zaha Hadid Architects before moving to Hong Kong in 2010. He is the recipient of the “Perspective 2012 – 40 under 40” award. 


Lecture by Takeo Igarashi

Published 2013年8月5日 by T—ADS

Design Everything by Yourself: User Interfaces for Graphics, CAD Modeling, and Robots

Lecture by Takeo Igarashi

Date: 8/9, 1:00 – 2:00 pm

Location: Obuchi Lab, Room 416


In order to help people to design objects by themselves and to enrich their lives, Prof. Takeo Igarashi develops innovative interaction techniques and computer design tools for end-users. His design-interface research projects have aimed to: (1) create three-dimensional models and animations by making simple sketches; (2) design everyday objects such as clothing and furniture with real-time physical simulation integrated in a simple geometry editor; (3) design the behavior of personal robots and give instructions to them to satisfy needs of end-users.

Prof. Takeo Igarashi is a professor at the Computer Science Department at the University of Tokyo. He received PhD from Dept of Information Engineering at the University of Tokyo in 2000. His research interest lies in user interface in general and current focus is on interaction techniques for 3D graphics. He is known as the inventor of sketch-based modeling system called Teddy, and received The Significant New Researcher Award at SIGGRAPH 2006. He served as a director of JST ERATO Igarashi Design Interface Project in 2007-2013.

Lecture by Janette Kim

Published 2013年8月5日 by T—ADS

Room for Debate

Lecture by Janette Kim

Date: 8/7, 5:30 – 6:30 pm

Location: Obuchi Lab, Room 416


Janette will discuss how headphones, a map, a guidebook, and a big styrofoam wall can start a public dialog about urban life, in real time. Janette’s work focuses on design and ecology in relationship to public representation, interest, and debate. 

Janette Kim is a designer, critic and educator based in New York City. She is a faculty member at Columbia University GSAPP, where she directs the Applied Research Practices in Architecture department, and the Urban Landscape Lab. Janette is principal of All of the Above, a research and design practice.

Kenzo Tange Symposium

Published 2013年7月22日 by T—ADS

This year marks the centennial anniversary of Kenzo Tange’s birth. In connection to a symposium, an exhibition is organized in the Architecture Library displaying Tange’s graduating thesis project from Tokyo University in 1938.  There are a series of events have been planned in various places in Japan to cerebrate his lifelong achievements.

The symposium was joined by Tange’s colleagues, former students, and office staff who discussed what was it like to work for him.

GA Interview

Published 2013年7月5日 by T—ADS

Yoshio Futagawa of GA came to Obuchi Lab and interviewed Prof. Obuchi a range of issues from current projects to his background story.

G30 Summer Pavilion Work in Progress 02

Published 2013年7月3日 by T—ADS

This year’s G30 Pavilion will be constructed with a series of components that are made of thin sheets of aluminum cut/weld with robotic fabrications. The welded aluminum sheets are then inflated with high-pressure air, making the components into 3D form.

In addition to material research in computational fabrications, we are experimenting with its assembly system. Instead of putting the components on site piece by piece, all of them are linked together to create a 2D surface first and then lifted with a series of cables to form a 3D shell structure. The assembly process is analogous to the way puppets are performed by a hand.