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From:
http://www.princeton.edu/cee/events/viewevent/?id=562
From a lecture by Philippe Block given for the Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Princeton University, on March 19, 2015. The title of the lecture is:
“Shells Revisited: Learning from the Gothic Master Builders”
Philippe Block writes:
“This lecture will present new computational form-finding and optimization approaches for exploring three-dimensional equilibrium shell structures, based on the stability analysis of the Gothic masonry vaults. Thanks to the intuitive graphical methods, the designer gains control over the exploration of form, which allows designing vaults with little or low-quality materials, or designing efficient and expressive surface structures.
“Several projects will demonstrate the power of these innovative methods for the safety assessment of historic masonry vaults with complex geometries and for the design and engineering of novel masonry shells, which range from sustainable construction solutions for developing countries to unique unreinforced vaults in tile or cut stone.
“The last part of the lecture will demonstrate how we can learn from the Master Builders to design better – well beyond masonry.”
Biography:
Philippe Block is Associate Professor at the Institute of Technology in Architecture, ETH Zurich, Switzerland, where he directs the BLOCK Research Group (BRG) together with Dr. Tom Van Mele. He is also associated faculty to the Department of Civil, Environmental and Geomatic Engineering at ETH Zurich. The BRG focuses on equilibrium analysis of masonry vaults and computational form finding and fabrication of curved surface structures. Dr. Block studied architecture and structural engineering at the VUB, Belgium and MIT, USA, and earned his PhD from MIT in 2009. As partner of Ochsendorf, DeJong & Block, LLC, he applies his research into practice on the structural assessment of historic monuments and the design and engineering of unique compression structures. He has won several awards for his research and work; has lectured at top universities, as well as leading engineering and architecture offices; and consulted for offices, such as Zaha Hadid Architects, Herzog & de Meuron and SOM Structures, and Studio Olafur Eliasson. His work has been exhibited at the Design Triennial 2009 in NYC, USA and the Architecture Biennial 2012 in Venice, Italy.
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