Smart Moves in San Francisco - SmartGeometry 2009

As with attending virtually any annual conference these days, there is that undeniable and unavoidable question which crops up. We all know it. Whether explicitly or implicitly, any 'responsible' conference would be obligated in answering to, well, the economy. And, along for the ride, let's not forget the environment. In case we might have been distracted momentarily.

{sidebar id=313 align=right} But the SmartGeometry 2009 Conference, having opened today in San Francisco, is not just any annual conference. By this, I mean there's no 'gentle reminder' of the economy in any discourse here. There's no 'because-it's-the-right-thing-to-do' chatter about the environment.

That's because SmartGeometry, or the world of intelligent computational design for which it advocates, by its very nature already is about responsible economies and environments. So there is no 'uneasiness', or 'refocusing', or 'retooling' in these parts today. The very talk of intelligent, computational design – from architectural projects to infrastructural systems – has arguably always been about lasting efficiencies, effectiveness and elegance. Maybe it should go without saying that, it always has been about being 'smart'.

So far... no dark clouds here, no gloom nor doom. If anything, just bright lights.


Value and Relationships
And, clearly, this year's organizers have pulled together that very roster of bright lights in the ever-evolving world of parametric design – digital design based on scripted code and dynamic data with possibilities ranging in associative form-finding to performance-driven decision-making.

As the ostensible reason to draw upon the leading figures from the design and construction communities, GenerativeComponents – the powerful and sophisticated parametric design software tool created by Bentley, the primary sponsor of this year's event – is yet again the familiar backbone to a well-curated mosaic of sessions showcasing the best and latest in generative design for our built environment.

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Huw Roberts of Bentley, opened the conference by positioning Bentley, alongside the SmartGeometry Group, as a company that seeks to “provide comprehensive software solutions for the infrastructure lifecycle”, while striking a balance so that “infrastructure has a role in sustaining society and in sustaining the environment”.

I got the chance to talk to Huw, when he said point blank that the software company’s primary interests are really centered around ‘value’ as well as ‘relationships’.

This made sense. Be it a leading-edge software package like GenerativeComponents, or sponsoring a leading-edge real-time event like SmartGeometry 2009 – you can’t go wrong trying to create value, while building relationships.

I saw this firsthand throughout the day. I see now how this would encourage any responsible software developer to push harder to create a better software environment or tool. I see now why GenerativeComponents is arguably the go-to tool and the safe bet in parametric design, as is evidenced by the depth, range, and diversity of the SmartGeometry community.

Building Visions/Vision Building
It makes sense, then, that the moment I arrived there was a buzz in the building here at the Palace Hotel in San Francisco. Only then, did it dawn on me that my arrival signaled the end of what was several days of studio-style workshops, training and collaborative project design, and the beginning of the conference proper itself: a two-day affair beginning with the Alumni Summit (entitled 'Building Visions') and closing with tomorrow's Conference Day (you guessed it, called 'Vision Building').

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Maybe it's just me, but nothing sets up a conference better than knowing that workshop participants (jury-selected from a global call for proposals) are busy producing fresh new design concepts, or strategies, only to be unveiled at the conference's final day.

Rumour has it many of these participants intend on yet another late night honing their designs, readying themselves to be showcased for tomorrow. Just like architecture school!

And good on the SmartGeometry team and Bentley for having the clairvoyance to provide all the necessary trimmings, like a pair of 3D printers provided by Z Corporation(www.zcorp.com), and a wide-format colour plotter provided by HP (www.hp.com) – all in a dedicated fabrication/output room affectionately called The FabLab. Smart thinking.

I was afforded a sneak-peak (by an equally enthusiastic Francis Rabuck, Bentley's Director of Real-Time Asset Laboratory) of the rapid-prototyping setup, which included a colour set-up as well. The surfaces were quite robust, and well-defined and articulate. Best of all, they handled very well and produced quickly.

At these workshops, there was commitment to the value of the design process, and commitment to building relationships between the participant, the tutor and on-site fabricators. The 'show' hadn't even started at that point, and I was already impressed.

Real-time Response
It didn’t stop there. The GenerativeComponents package that was being used by the participants was in fact a beta-copy. In other words, members of the software development team were brought on site, alongside the various tutors, experts and participants to absorb any thoughts, ideas, and recommendations to finetune GenerativeComponents towards its next release. Bravo to Bentley for getting this right, and to the SmartGeometry organizers, for having the courage to have a beta-testing environment where it really counts. Where they can learn the real on-the-ground, in-the-trenches issues.

Cross-fertilization
In attendance, were the founding trio of SmartGeometry: J Parrish (ArupSport), Lars Hesselgren (Kohn Pedersen Fox Architects) and Hugh Whitehead (Foster + Partners) – collectively having the right instincts in 2001, to assemble a group which would ultimately foster the exchange of ideas and provide an evolving repository of those ideas, to patterned off the interests and ambitions of what was then a burgeoning, young industry in computer-aided-modeling and manufacturing.

Their essential relationship with Bentley from those early days makes events like these all the more powerful. Like proud parents, now, they are witness to a blossoming, new generation of thinkers and makers, a new generation ready to share notes and cross-fertilize, and more ready to tackle the challenges of diversifying trends of architectural/structural/infrastructural design challenges, responsibilities and opportunities. But not before sharing their findings together, and not before convening in an atmosphere – at once pleasurable and rigorous – to advance concepts and techniques in computational design.

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Some of today’s speakers come from, among other places, the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts, University of Pennsylvania, MIT and Grimshaw Architects in London. I’m intrigued also with the Day 2 as I look down the list of the presenters, which include speakers from the Architectural Association, Morphosis, Arup (on the Bird’s Nest Olympic Stadium by Herzog and de Meuron).

I think it’s fair to say, that the audience is well-primed for a multi-valent, multi-layered series of discussions. The level of sophistication in the titles alone suggest a level of scholarship that is sure to provide fruitful debate. I’m looking forward to harvesting many of the forthcoming ideas over the next two days...)

I wanted to provide a backdrop to the main events which will be unfolding… Hope this gives you a feel of what I see happening here. In some ways, to understand the spirit of SmartGeometry 2009 is to understand how the medium of the conference itself, as McLuhan might put it, is the message as well.

(I will write in depth about selected presentations upon finishing the conference… Stay tuned!)

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Don Chong is a V1 Magazine columnist and architect based in Toronto. His work and studio information are available at www.donaldchongstudio.com