Avoiding the black box : performative design and contextual opportunities

Abstract

The idea of performance is being re-examined in contemporary architectural discourse. The performative-paradigm is seeing the emergence of concepts that are based on a broad range of contextual parameters due to developments and the increased accessibility of computationally based methods of simulation, visualization and production. Initially concerned with structural efficiency, the simplicity and reduction of form associated with functionalist reasoning now gives rise to a fresh dialogue between form and function where each is codependent, rather than a result of the other. With the introduction of computer simulation at the end of the last century many designs have taken advantage of digital tools in order to rationalize complex forms. Form is defined and fed into a tool in order to calculate and design the needed structure, without knowledge or understanding as to how the tool is working, the black box approach. Bruno Latour describes this as: "an expression from the sociology of science that refers to the way scientific and technical work is made invisible by its own success. When a machine runs efficiently, when a matter of fact is settled, one need focus only on its inputs and outputs and not on its internal complexity. Thus, paradoxically, the more science and technology succeed, the more opaque and obscure they become" The black box approach therefore hides the workings of the tool. Computation is viewed as a mechanistic process, being pre-designed and specific to the task. Form is followed by structural design and lastly choice of material. Current performative discourse is pushing for a reverse in approach where: "performance is here reformulated as a driving concept for design that helps re-consolidate form and function into a synergetic relation with the dynamics of natural, cultural and social environments, and in so doing, locate performative capacity" The motivation to research the performative paradigm emerges from the tensions between sustainability, recent developments in technology and our understanding of it. Computer aided design/manufacturing processes (CAD/CAM) allow for an exploration and implementation of systems based on natural rather than industrial systems. The research focuses on the relationship between natural systems and performative design through examining the theory behind the development of digital tools and fabrication technologies.