Camouflage
Jonathan Dawes, Dagobert Bergmans, Fumiko Kato
aainter6camouflage.blogspot.com
Camouflage patterns and forms in the animal kingdom are the outcome of both genetics and the physical conditions of the habitat: creatures mutate to ‘become’ their surroundings. We are interested in this interactive process of becoming, which is not uniquely about disguise but also about changes in our perception. We will study instances of camouflage, both artificial and naturally occurring, and investigate their potential relevance and application within architecture.
Disruptive Pattern
Disruptive Pattern Material was first used as battle costume or applied to military vehicles or warships. Differing forms such as dazzle (borrowed from cubism) don’t actually conceal a ship’s presence but instead distort its perceived trajectory and proximity. Buildings are generally inanimate, but inhabiting them engages the effects of stillness and motion. The unit will explore disruptive pattern as a device for making and evolving material approaches that are responsive to movement and light and applicable at various scales of operation.
Lineage
Our approach will be both experimental and analytical. Research will oscillate between the fabrication of material constructs and a critical evaluation of iterations and their effects. Specific surfaces, textures and geometries will be created using both digital and analogue fabrication techniques. Repetition will be explored and applied through evolutionary processes such as unfolded nets or woven organisations. The task will be to produce new tectonic patterns with inherent spatial qualities.
Fieldwork
Fieldwork in Tokyo will examine the complex pattern of the city and the roles of camouflage at the scale of a building. A unit-wide catalogue of our findings will be published, classifying key principles for future spatial intervention and strategic use at an urban level.
Endgame
The conflict of different uses and users will be the context in which we test building skins, morphologies and programmes. Polarised programmatic types will test effects such as concealment alongside models that highlight awareness. The objective will be to crystallise the sensation and effects of camouflage through the construction of tactile drawings, relief and sectional models and large-scale fabrications.
Bios
Jonathan Dawes graduated from the AA Diploma School and the University of East London (where he taught from 2002 to 2006 as Degree & Diploma Unit Master). Founder of Flowspace Architecture (www.flowspace.com), he is currently Project Architect for Brentwood Sixth Form Centre at Cottrell & Vermeulen Architecture. AA Unit Master since 2007.
Dagobert Bergmans studied at Technical University Eindhoven and at the AA with Pascal Schöning and Raoul Bunschoten. He has worked for S333 Architecture & Urbanism and founded Pool Ruimte voor Architectuur en Stedebouw. Won Europan 8 in Erfurt, Germany, 2006. Design Tutor at the TU in Eindhoven from 2003 to 2005, he is now working for Dana Ponec Architects in Amsterdam.
Fumiko Kato studied at Osaka Institute of Technology in Japan and the University of East London. She is currently a director of Flowspace Architecture, with ongoing projects both in the UK and Japan.
