Material Performance: Fibrous Tectonics & Architectural Morphology

Material Fibrous Tectonics & Architectural Morphology is a studio report from the Fall 2015 semester at the Harvard University Graduate School of Design. In biology, most load-bearing structures are fibrous systems. These natural composites share their fundamental characteristics with manmade composites such as glass- or carbon-fiber-reinforced plastics. But in contrast to the biological systems and their astounding morphological differentiation, technical fiber composites are usually considered to be amorphic—that is, intrinsically formless and thus dependent on external formwork. This studio challenged this conception with the aim to reveal the “morphic” character of fibrous systems and discover their inherent material gestalt.