Algorithms are Thoughts*
Using several NBBJ works-in-progress Nathan will contextualize the radical changes occurring in the global practice of architecture as enabled by new digital paradigms.
Nathan will discuss two primary professional works. The first project is an 84,000 square meter corporate headquarters currently in schematic design. The second project is an Olympic-sized sports venue currently under construction. Both projects made extensive use of computational frameworks to enable performance-driven workflows, accelerate production processes, and extend creative decision making. Additional work surrounding NBBJ’s Design Computation initiative and Nathan’s personal blog ‘The Proving Ground’ will also be discussed.
The lecture’s claim that ‘Algorithms are Thoughts’ argues for a design culture that transcends the discussion about digital tools and techniques. Nathan will, instead, articulate a designer-programmer paradigm where computation acts as a necessary extension to (and expression of) design thinking… the ultimate outcome of which is the inseparability of concept and performance.
*Title inspired by the concept of Live Coding and the Toplap Manifesto
