Paper Wall

Matthew Azen, Stephen Cassell and Adam Yarinsky

ARCHITECTURE RESEARCH OFFICE: ON RESEARCH IN PRACTICE
ARO is a practice of building where individual projects are a vehicle for research into program, form, material, and construction. We begin with research into the complex conditions of a project, questioning its physical, social, and economic context. From this initial investigation, we generate a series of ideas that begin to shape our design. We systematically test the architectural manifestations of our ideas through drawings, models, and mock-ups. This rigorous visual testing informs our intuition and often yields unexpected results. We strive to create designs that are a layering of many ideas. Through research, our goal is to discover new possibilities of experience and architectural expression.

CASE STUDY: PAPER WALL
Architecture and design, which moved far from their craft roots in the age of mechanization, are undergoing a paradoxical return to those roots in a computer-age revolution driven by applications of CAD/CAM (Computer Aided Design/Computer Aided Manufacture). The integration of computer representation and the fabrication capabilities of computer-controlled equipment allow for a direct connection between the architect/designer and the finished product. This is changing the relationship between thinking and making. CAD/CAM has the potential to transform the making of architecture in ways that are both fundamental and beautiful. It creates new material possibilities and gives the designer an unprecedented level of participation in the construction process.

ARO, with a grant from the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA), embarked on its research into the relationship between CAD/CAM and craft in November 1999. The research began as an exploration of two separate but related areas; the first was to learn how a computer-controlled laser cutter could be used as a design tool, and the second, to explore how the capabilities and limits of the laser-cutter and the properties of a specific medium (paper) could inform an installation at Artists Space gallery in SoHo, New York City. This project is a case study of ARO�s investigation of materials and methods of fabrication.

PHASE 1: LASER CUT PAPER
We learned about CAD/CAM technology at a basic level by considering the laser cutter�s simplest possible two-dimensional uses (the laser cutter operates on flat materials), rather than starting with three-dimensional applications. Initial studies with 3� x 5� pieces of different materials familiarized us with the capabilities of the laser cutter. We made a test pattern that we applied to the materials, methodically changing one of the laser�s variables: speed, power, and pulses per inch. As we developed an intuitive familiarity with the laser cutter, we realized that there were many more variables to consider, including the chronology of the laser cuts and the force of the air over the material that ventilates the machine. The better we understood how CAD/CAM technology worked with a specific material, the more it informed the process of designing and making.

Simultaneously, we began a series of studies and applications that examined the physical characteristics of paper. We investigated how a single paper unit could be fabricated, tiled (to create a continuous surface), and formed into a three-dimensional shape. Paper�s material properties, including its ability to bend, fold, twist, crumple, and tear, acquired a new dimension with the laser cutter. We explored its tensile and compressive properties, connective abilities, and volumetric potential. We learned to cut and score in ways that could not be done by hand and to achieve settings that would cut rather than burn the paper. Working directly with the laser cutter instead of outside fabricators, we were able to determine quickly what worked and what did not, and to make adjustments accordingly. We discovered ways to create new textures and translucency in paper that were not previously possible.

We then merged the two separate bodies of research and began drafting our ideas for paper tiles using Minicad (a CAD drafting program) and cutting the pieces with the laser cutter. Our goal was to begin to expand upon the size limitations of the individual paper module to make larger elements through the assembly of multiple units. The laser cutter eliminated the time and difficulty required to fabricate each tile precisely by hand. It was suddenly possible to mass produce tiles in order to execute an idea about creating a surface or a volume.

PHASE 2: WALL FABRICATION AND INSTALLATION
For the Artists Space gallery, we created and installed a freestanding paper wall using laser-cut and manually-folded units that were joined with minimal mechanical fastening. Each unit�s size was dictated by the maximum allowable cutting area of the laser cutter of 18� x 24�. Several test walls, each based upon a different unit design and structural strategy, were built to develop the form and construction of the installation. The leap from the individual unit to a larger self-supporting wall drove the design process. The shape, texture, and color of the units came out of our initial explorations of laser-cut paper.

The final wall consisted of stacked interlocking opaque and translucent units. Each unit had a flat exterior surface and a bowed interior, finely striated with alternating cuts removed. The straw-like result was then interwoven with adjacent units, allowing the units to shift and reposition themselves as subsequent rows were added in a running-bond pattern. The wall was illuminated from above so that the inner core was visible and the depth and texture of the entire assembly was accentuated.

The project was a success, although the wall collapsed on the night of the exhibition opening. Unforeseen field conditions, including an uneven floor and the close proximity of a large crowd of people, compromised the fragile structural balance of the wall. However, the knowledge gained from this exploration has influenced other work in the office and is being further developed. ARO�s research into CAD/CAM technology is ongoing.

This article was written by Matthew Azen, Stephen Cassell and Adam Yarinsky
The Paper Wall project team was: Stephen Cassell and Adam Yarinsky (partners in charge), Scott Abrahams, Matt Azen, Alan Bruton.

Support for this project was provided by the New York State Council on the Arts and by Artists Space Gallery.