Yasmin Ali

This month I have a product to review that brightened my day, in the form of a pocket sundial. The role of sunlight in design is something that architects have worked with for hundreds of years. There is a pocket version of an ancient tool available to help with solar studies, via a pocket sundial that is a thing of beauty. H. M. Kala’s Sundial, also subtitled as the Sunwatch, it tells the time of day by the position of the Sun, determined by aligning its moveable calibrated concentric rings. Its type is known as the universal equinoctial ring dial, a portable version originally designed in the 15^th Century for sailors.

The rings are called equatorial and meridian rings, or Gemma’s rings, and when not in use can be folded together into a small flat disk. The central bar holds a perforated slider that was positioned to the month and day according to a scale scribed on the bar. This style of sundial indicates true North and is aligned with the Earth's axis; to do this, the user configures the appropriate latitude setting to the location. This means the sundial also functions as a miniature model of the Earth and a compass.

As well as the illustrious history of its original invention, the Kala sundial has a proud family history and German engineering. It’s a remarkable instrument miniaturised to take on your travels.

Retails at 42euros+shipping // For more information see website here

With thanks to Matthaeus Kala of H.M.Kala

As part of the architecture postgraduate course, Strathclyde University is running a series of symposia, and opening these up to the public as guests and architectural professionals as CPD events. The second in this series was themed around architecture and technological representation, and featured talks from two academics, Prof. Neil Spiller and Dr. Rachel Armstrong.

Neil Spiller is an academic and author based at The University of Greenwich. His work has a recurring theme of issues concerning digital media and architectural representation. He spoke of his longstanding interests in these areas, showing slides to illustrate his talk of key influences and many of his own drawings which blur the boundaries between the handmade, the mechanical and the digital. Key themes included Surrealism; metaphysics; psychogeography; modern art; modernism in general; collage; and concepts borrowed from digital media including Augmented Reality; cybernetics; cyberspace; hyperlinks; and the virtual world.

Spiller also introduced AVATAR, a group founded over 10 years ago at The Bartlett, UCL, along with its seven continuum of Space; Technology; Semiotics; Time; Psychogeography; Scope and Sensitivity. This led on to the introduction of his former colleague and the second speaker Dr. Rachel Armstong, who currently works for the unit. Armstrong has an interested background as a PhD architecture graduate via a biomedical sciences background. This gives her a unique set of skills and position of commentary on key issues, such as the quantification of sustainable outcomes.

After a brief introduction on the meaning and implications of the sustainability agenda, Armstrong set out a thesis that calls for the ontology of process as opposed to the hegemonic object-based philosophy generally pursued in architecture. In addition she cites biomimicry as a suitable tactic to emulate and introduced a series of films of experiments documenting life-like synthetic processes, such as the immiscibility of oil and water, a modern documentation of an experiment originally conducted in the late-eighteenth century. This work was reminiscent of video artist Robert Smithson’s work on entropy, which has been cited by architectural commentators as architecture’s ‘thermodynamic turn’.

Armstrong also introduced the pioneering project ‘Future Venice’, conducted in-situ with a team including Spiller, to use simulated technologies to recreate and reconstruct limestone in Venice’s waterways, to reinforce its foundation systems. She spoke of ‘programmable droplets’, which could ideally respond to changing conditions and assimilate to the marine ecology without further configuration. Citing the evolution of geotherms to angiotherms – or leafy to flowering plants – as a response to carbon fixation needs, Armstrong is hopeful for not only simulated life but evolution to future needs.

// This is the second part of a series of four symposia running weekly until and including the 27^th February, except the 13th

Future Venice - here

Subtitled as '111 Inspiring Ideas for a Better City', LeCool's A Smart Guide to Utopia is a must-have on any discerning citizen's bookshelf. Beautifully-bound and presented hardback edition with silver gilded lettering and yellow-edged paper. It is illustrated with carefully-curated accompanying photos, sketches, infographics and excerpts from architectural presentation drawings, making it a visual feast.

One of the strengths of its textual content is that it is readable to the general community, not just urban planners. It includes essays by contributors which include architects and key urban thinkers, among these city marketing guru Richard Florida and global multidisciplinary design and engineering firm ARUP. There is also input from LeCool editors from around the world including LeCool London, Lisbon, Budapest, Moscow, Vienna and Barcelona, as well as the founding agency.

Inspring and informative links to associated websites populate the footer of many pages, making this a book for the digital ages. The book is indexed, making the ideas easy to find, and the volume is a useful source book or as a primer for concept research on emerging urban innovations.

// With thanks to K-MB Berlin, Smart, and LeCool
// Retails at £20  (24euros)+ p&p, Hardback, 160 pages, available online from LeCool online bookshop

Weblinks

LeCool Bookshop - http://lecoolbook.com
LeCool website (magazines) - here
LeCool Glasgow - here

A+DS has a programme of Friday Lunchtime lectures planned, hosted between 1-2pm at The Lighthouse, in an informal workshop setting. AJ's Sustainability Editor Hattie Harman spoke at the second of these, on the topic of teaching ecological design, including recent work covered and initiatives raised by The Architects' Journal, as well as a brief survey of current facilities in higher education in architecture throughout the UK.

AJ surveyed Part I students regards their stance on sustainable design provision throughout their studies, with surprising results. Although only 30% said that sustainability was a consideration in the choice of their  Part I course, 86% considered it when choosing their Part II course, proving green design is high on the agenda for trainees in architecture. In addition, 68% of respondents said that sustainable principles were a central consideration (43%) or core feature (25%) of their design work. Harman plans to follow up the initial survey with further considered questions in the future.

Of Universities currently involved in sustainable architecture programmes, Harman cited The Centre of Advanced Technology in Wales, AA's Hooke Park in Dorset, The Bartlett, Oxford Brookes and Bath University as centres known for their work. In particular, at The Bartlett, CJ Lim's utopic studio unit  'The Imagination of urban ecologies' has yielded interesting theoretical work. In addition, there are a few universtities noted as Centres of Excellence in Sustainable Building Design by The Royal Academy of Engineering. Of these, The Bartlett is one, joined by Loughborough, Sheffield and Heriot-Watt Universities.

The discussion moved to one which encouraged more interdisciplinary working between architecture students and contemporaries of allied disciplines, including engineering. A delegate from Glasgow School of Art spoke of the INTERACT project for 3rd Year students at GSA which allows them to work with engineering and quantity surveying students. Other attendees from Strathclyde School of Architecture spoke of sustainability having been on the curriculum since 1995 and before, along with structure and engineering, all taught embedded in the architectural school as part of the Faculty of Engineering.

The general consensus was that sustainability is something to be taught early in architectural schools, and holistically, though not so diffuse as to become imperceptible.

The event was run in association with SEDA (The Scottish Ecological Design Association), and the current Krystyna Johnson Awards exhibition 2013 for second year architectural students, also hosted at The Lighthouse, until 11.12.13.

AJ runs its Footprint section focusing on sustainability issues in its last print issue of each month.

For further events of  A+DS This Friday Presents... see http://www.ads.org.uk/access/features/this-friday-presents or Follow @ArcDesSco on Twitter. Entry to talks cost £3 and include tea or coffee.

The next in the series is 9th November, 'Poor Change, Loose Fit', James Mitchell of Orkidstudio. Tickets available online here.