Coding Architecture I

The assignment uses Python loops and conditions with COMPAS Box geometry to build a stretcher-bond wall controlled by brick dimensions and row and column counts. The basic bond is extended with distance-driven rotation and half-bricks.

Alternating rows receive half-length offsets. The distance between each brick and an attractor point controls rotation. Separate end conditions and half-bricks align the ends of alternating courses.

The submission contains a Grasshopper definition and three images: the basic bond, an attractor-driven rotated wall, and a wall with aligned ends. Changing placement and rotation rules produces distinct facade rhythms and depth from the same brick module.

The assignment creates an object-oriented filter that selects 3D grid points using Brep geometry referenced from Rhino. Accepted points become boxes, with extensions for filter combinations and data visualization.

BrepFilter tests whether points lie inside the geometry. The Grid component collects accepted points and boxes and remaps height values to 0–255 colour data. MergeFilter combines two filters with OR or AND to apply geometric and mathematical conditions together.

Two submitted images show stepped volumes and a filtered grid with pronounced vertical modules. A black-to-red height gradient makes the vertical distribution legible. The Grasshopper definition, Rhino model, and actual output screenshots document both geometric control and height visualization.

The task generates slab objects from building-grid VolMesh faces parallel to the XY plane. The Slab class stores geometry, category, and originating halfface ID, linking form to element information.

Opposite-cell adjacency and face direction distinguish roof, floor_slab, and bottom_slab categories, visualized by colour. Integer division and modulo operations convert slab indices into stacking rows, columns, and levels. The submitted code uses ten slabs per stack and five stacks per row.

The first submitted image shows coloured slab categories within a grid of columns and beams. The second separates and stacks copies of the slabs. The same element data is represented in its building position and in an arrangement for fabrication and transport.

The final assignment integrates filters, building grids, and element-generation code on a real Zurich site. A-Hive selects Altstetten and expresses the contrast between dynamic office space and calmer residential space through two interlocking masses.

The project modifies and applies scripts developed in class. A Brep filter shapes the lower volume; office modules are halved to refine the form. Curtain walls are controlled by the number of panels per face rather than fixed glass dimensions. An attractor curve shapes variation in the residential area, while a Common Bond brick pattern prioritizes a condition for every sixth course.

The final submission includes a Grasshopper definition, Rhino model, five renderings covering perspective, aerial views, and facade detail, and a one-page poster. The interlocking office and residential masses and the contrast between glass and brick are shown within their urban context. A-Plaza proposes opening the base to the city; the poster describes the relationship between work and living as a Living Grid.