ZAHA HADID ARCHITECTS
PLEATED SHELL STRUCTURES
October 12 – December 2, 2012
SCI-Arc Gallery

Exhibition Discussion & Reception: Friday, October 12, 7pm
With Zaha Hadid Architects Partner Patrik Schumacher and SCI-Arc Director Eric Owen Moss

Los Angeles, CA (September 13, 2012)—The Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) is pleased to present a Zaha Hadid Architects site specific installation opening October 12 in the SCI-Arc Gallery. Pleated Shell Structures, a short term research prototype designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Zaha Hadid and her firm, posits itself within the argument of parametric design research to focus its efforts on design methods that encompass an operative pathway from design intent to manifestation.

Physical form-finding—hanging chains and cloth, soap films etc.—and associated architectural design methods as pioneered by Antonio Gaudi, Heinz Isler, Frei Otto, Felix Candela and others is common knowledge among architects. The proposed research-prototype aims to extend this work to adequately represent the ambitions and complexities of scale, digital design systems and delivery mechanisms of contemporary architectural practices. The installation will explore as a design-build exercise, synergies between architectural articulation, engineering logics and fabrication constraints. It will continue Zaha Hadid Architects’ on-going research on architectural articulation of self-supporting, curved surface geometries.

About Zaha Hadid Architects
Zaha Hadid, founder of Zaha Hadid Architects (ZHA), was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize in 2004 and is internationally known for her built, theoretical and academic work. Each of her dynamic and transformative projects builds on over thirty years of revolutionary exploration and research in the interrelated fields of urbanism, architecture and design. Working with senior office partner Patrik Schumacher, Hadid’s interest lies in the rigorous interface between architecture, landscape, and geology as her practice integrates natural topography and human-made systems, leading to experimentation with cutting-edge technologies. Such a process often results in unexpected and dynamic architectural forms. The MAXXI Museum in Rome and the London Aquatics Centre for the 2012 Olympic Games are excellent demonstrations of ZHA’s quest for complex, fluid space. Their earlier projects have also been hailed as architecture that transforms our vision of the future with new spatial concepts and bold, visionary forms. www.zaha-hadid.com

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SCI-Arc exhibitions and public programs are made possible in part by a grant from the City of Los Angeles, Department of Cultural Affairs.

Public Programs
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SCI-Arc Public Programs are subject to change beyond our control. For the most current information, please visit www.sciarc.edu or call 213-613-2200.

Parking and Hours
The entrance to SCI-Arc's parking lot is at 350 Merrick Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013, between Traction Avenue and 4th Street in Los Angeles. The SCI-Arc Gallery is open daily from 10am–6pm.

About SCI-Arc
Southern California Institute of Architecture (SCI-Arc) is dedicated to educating architects who will imagine and shape the future. It is an independent, accredited degree-granting institution offering undergraduate and graduate programs in architecture. Located in a quarter-mile-long former freight depot in the Arts District in Downtown Los Angeles, the school is distinguished by its vibrant studio culture and emphasis on process. SCI-Arc’s approximately 500 students and 80 faculty members, most of whom are practicing architects, work together to re-examine assumptions, create, explore and test the limits of architecture. SCI-Arc faculty and leadership have garnered more than 300 national and international design awards and recognitions, including Progressive Architecture awards, American Institute of Architects (AIA) awards, and the prestigious Jencks and Pritzker architecture prizes. SCI-Arc is ranked second in design and computer applications in the 2012 America’s Best Architecture Schools survey from DesignIntelligence, and #1 graduate and #2 undergraduate architecture school in Western U.S. SCI-Arc is located at 960 E. 3rd Street, Los Angeles, CA 90013. www.sciarc.edu