I have been slacking on my duties of sharing with the world wide web all the goings on at Knowlton in 2013. For that I apologize. Let me take this opportunity to summarize how awesome the semester has been.

Karamba 3d: It all started back in January when Justin Diles, our LeFevre Fellow brought Clemens Preisinger to lead a 5 day workshop for M. Arch students in his Karamba 3D program. Karamba3d is a finite element analysis program which works with Rhino and Grasshopper,  tailored to the needs of architects.  The M. ARCH students learned to use parametric geometric modeling, finite element calculations and optimization algorithms to create intricate structural scenarios for figural building massings.

Prototypes resulting from the workshop were reviewed by KSA professors Jeff Kipnis and José Oubrerie and renowned structural engineer Klaus Bollinger prior to his Baumer lecture on Wednesday, January 16th. Bollinger is director of the structural engineering firm Bollinger-Grohmann.

Each M. Arch team was responsible for designing, analyzing and then building a large spatial structure.  The structures were built from 150 sheets of flat 4'x8' cardboard, with each sheet individually into patterns that created large, structurally stable cells. My group designed a 15 ft tall structure inspired from the Alice in Wonderland Queen of Hearts Army.

Possible Mediums: Then in February, Knowlton hosted the Possible Mediums Conference and had students from The Ohio State University Knowlton School of Architecture, University of Kentucky College of Design, University of Michigan Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning, and The University of Illinois at Chicago School of Architecture. Assistant Professor of Architecture Kristy Balliet served as conference chair.

"The Possible Mediums conference is composed of a series of workshops and panel discussions revolving around four “possible mediums.” Challenging the boundaries of architectural convention, the invited workshop leaders employ exploratory processes rooted in mediums external to the discipline (such as film or comics) or developed from atypical applications of more conventional mediums (such as drawings or models). The technical sophistication and inventive applications of their work reflect two major developments within speculative architecture of the past decade: a broad diffusion of technological expertise and a shift from critical to projective theory. Preserving commitment to expertise and imagination, Possible Mediums places this group of designers in productive dialog, unpacking their collective foundations and futures."- taken from the KSA website

Exit Reviews: Later in February the M. Arch G3 students gave their Exit Review Presentations. Some topics which were explored were new phenomenology in architecture and criticisms of representation of architecture: renderings, drawings, and film.

The five finalist for the the Exit Review Presentations are Ben, Flaute, Megan Dixon, Lindsey McLaughlin, John Yurchyk and Dave Johnson. They will re-present to a new panel at Knowlton on Wednesday April 24th.

Eigenforms: In April, Justin Diles, our LeFevre Fellow  and a recent graduate of Penn, gave a lecture and presented his Gallery Show entitled: Eigenforms. Diles explored the use of fiberglass and held workshops for students during the making of his installation pieces.

Beaux Arts Ball: Just last night Knowlton and AIAS hosted the Annual Beaux Arts Ball which had the theme of De Stijl. The event was a great success and was open to all KSA students, professionals, and members of the design community.

Finally Graduation: May 5th. This will probably be my last post as a current M. Arch student since I will be graduating this spring. I am looking forward to the next step in my design career but will miss the time I have spent at Knowlton. This year's graduation speaker is President Obama.