Ivrea - Factory Futures II: architecture without humans

Monday 1 – Friday 12 July 2013

For its second consecutive year the AA – together with the Adriano Olivetti Foundation and Gehry Technologies Europe – returns to the former Olivetti headquarters in Ivrea to explore contemporary logics of architectural production in relation to the speculative work environment of the future: once again, we will scavenge the Olivetti archives, drift through industrial landscapes, encounter luminaries and (mis)use Gehry Technologies tools to construct our very own architectural machineries and sensibilities. 

In reclaiming the local tradition calling for a complete industrialization of the architectural project, we will first dig deep into the architectures of the Olivetti factories in order to nurture our instrumental ideas in relation to the “high prefab” project of the 1960’s: we will collect and classify grids, components, and material assemblies to construct an architectural DNA for our design experiments. 

We will then aim the computational and industrial manufacturing tools of Gehry Technologies to the processing of these “original parents” towards the displacement of the strategies that have dominated modern architecture such as modularity, repetition and homogeneity. Through hands-on applications and critical seminars, participants will be introduced to the concept ofassociativity as the principle that organises the project in a long chain of relationships from the first conceptual ideas to the driving of the machines that will prefabricate the components to be assembled on site.

The tectonic potential of our associative design strategies will be deployed to envisage new, prototypical forms of industrial buildings: as automation takes command, the large-scale horizontal typology is in urgent need of critical and technical reappraisal. Inspired by the rich Olivetti aesthetics, we will produce precise technical drawings, numerically fabricated models and large scale individual posters addressing – through the power of image making - radical relationships between space, technology and contemporary subjectivities

Applications

The deadline for applications is 15 June 2013. All participants travelling from abroad are responsible for securing any visa required. After payment of fees, the AA can provide a letter confirming participation in the workshop. A portfolio or CV is not required, only the online application form and payment.

Fees

The AA Visiting School requires a fee of £695 per participant, which includes a £60 Visiting Membership. If you are already a member, the total fee will be reduced automatically by £60 by the online payment system. Fees are non refundable. A limited number of scholarships will be offered on an interview-based system. Fees do not include flights. Accommodation during the workshop is not provided, but advice accommodation options can be advised. 

Students need to bring their own laptops, digital equipment and model making tools. Please ensure this equipment is covered by your own insurance as the AA takes no responsibility for items lost or stolen at the workshop.

Eligibility 
The workshop is open to architecture and design students and professionals worldwide.