Gorillaz are a virtual band created by actual humans and sometimes flatmates Damon Albarn (musician; Blur) and Jamie Hewlett (graphic artist; Tank Girl). The band consists of four animated members - 2D, Murdoc, Noodle and Russel - who are voiced and instrumented by an ever-changing array of highly diverse real-life musical collaborators such as Snoop-Dogg, Lou Reed, Mos Def, Mark E Smith, members of the Clash, De La Soul, Bobby Womack... ... anything could happen

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONE

STAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

1/ gorillaz studio

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

leads and wires... leads and wires ... Russel can’t work out where they all go. Gorillaz studio has grown like a fungus; a great coral bommie of electromagnetic potential and strange beauty. This stack of speakers, urban camouflage and found electronic objects is liable to wage musical war, or death, when plugged in...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

blank box bare speaker covered speaker

voronoi box mesh box jigsaw box

random component selectionfor stack

selection of stack componentsto fill chosen form

high variation instack size and orientation

box size, aspect ratio

box orientation, rotation

box colour selection could be randomised or alloted from a palette based on various inputparameters (e.g. a gradient)

form-finding by stacking of rectilinear box-like elements

this structure becomes lessboxy and more frame-like asit ascends

Russel is confused

flattening of curved surfaces for prototyping or fabrication

appearance of sheet steel panels and rivets

2/ the glitter freeze

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

The Glitter Freeze... its the Gorillaz personal mechanised submarine/ ship/ shark vessel and its a superb piece of naval architecture - doesn’t everyone have one of these? Not only does it occassionally fly through the air but it also eats Pink Floyd’s pigs for breakfast... the ultimate stage prop?

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

exploration and optmisation of overall forms using swept/ lofted

shapes and cross sectionsscreengrab from ‘On Melancholy Hill’ video

example of a surface with smooth curvaturebeing divided into regular, but differently-sizedpanels

Gorillaz get their first glimpse of Plastic Beach Island

scale optimisation to suitstage and transport size

requirements

exploration of different surfacedivision schemes

propulsion turbinesspin slowly

portholes / flashing lights

command deckcan be entered for

additional theatricality

appears solid - built formis a front surface only - void behind

3/ G-hive

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

this huge stack of... of... what are those things? well whatever they are, this huge stack forms a formidable cellular beehive-like backdrop of subwoofing power, reflecting on the plastic/organic - hard/soft - rock/hip-hop - nature of Gorillaz existence...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

basic form-finding using a range ofgeometric parameters

metallic

mesh glossy

opportunity to distribute voidsbased on a gradient

number of cells in X and Y variable

some examples of hexagonal form-finding andtessalation

merging of geometric and organic patterns

random assignment of different materialities, for example: perforated

cell geometry, cross section

each cell might have different properties, some could be back lit, opaque, mirrored etc.

easy to dis-assemble, transport, and reconfigure for a different arrangement each show

4/ plastic beach

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

Plastic Beach... from the album of the same name... Gorillaz HQ is a secret floating island in the South Pacific located as far from any other land mass as it’s possible to get... not only is it the most deserted spot on the planet, but its made of the collected debris and detritus of humanity - re-imagined here as a glorious glistening crystaline fat-berg...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

the faceted form could be imagined as a continuous surface, a spaceframe, a collection of nodes...

tile polygonic shape could be the subject of much exploration

node repel, node attract

tiled surface could beopaque, semi-opaque,transparent, to achievea variety of interesting stageeffects

A large variety of ‘primitive’ shapes created viaincremental adjustment of geometrical parameters,scale, rotation, orientation etc.

Plastic Beach (from album cover)

extraction of surfaces for 2D fabrication geometriclimits

palm trees

5/ the motherboard

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

This development of the Gorillaz studio design looms high in the air, blasting light, sound and urban awesomeness onto the heaving throng below - components, cubes, voids, speakers, light boxes, samplers, pedals - rotated, translated, translucent, opaque...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

no. of rows, boxes per row

the overall form isimagined as resultingfrom clustering ordistributing the different type of compoents to achieve interesting spatial effects within the stageenvelope

Different spatial effects achieved by clusters of rotated,translated, coloured and textured cubes

no. of columns,boxes per column

section

rationalisation ofstructure to just the

visible surfaces

speaker voidlight

distribution of different componenttypes depending on variable inputs

translation

geometry, rotationhollows, voids scaling

addition

intersection

a network ofdangling catenary

wires ‘plugs in’some of the

componentswould add further

interest (or chaos)

6/ trash and treasure

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

any trash and filth not conglomerating in secret on Plastic Beach ends up in this giant trawler net... including the band. This lightweight yet strong structure offers real-life performing Gorilla (and keen stage-furniture climber) Damon opportunities to scale its curves and freak out the security heavies...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

exploration of basic geometric variables

tile smooth, ‘pulled’ shape could be optimised for pleasing effects

form is open to egg crate/ waffle/ contour cut exploration

boat hulls cruiseoverhead

Examples of open meshed or net-like structural framesresulting in sculptural spaces

opportunities for theatricalgorilla-ing

flashing panels, lights,debris of human

existance, plasticobjects, pop stars

trapped in net

trawler

wrapping of flat mesh onto curved surface

7/ lobster pot

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

this time its not just the band that’s been trawled but the entire stage... this lobster-pot features a collection of trapped debris and gives plenty of structural integrity for spectacular stage appurtenances... but thankfully omits the stinking rotting bait fish...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

geometric variability

trapped objects become the subject of form-finding experimentation

cage-like structures featuring increasing irregularity,non-uniformity and deformation

isolation of individual structural elements for fabrication

trapped objectsare lit, or contain

mirrored surfaces

object-grid repel grid deformation

8/ deformed net

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

A variation on the trawler net and lobster pot concepts, with similar trapped debris/ performance objects, but specifically featuring and exploiting the opportunities presented by grid deformation...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

parametric grid deformation based on nodes

differing mesh/ grid/ perforation typologies

basic planar surface could be controlled, stretched to become increasingly more expressive

trapped objects takethe form of super-sized consumer items,and perform as stagelights

Grid deformation (or ‘grid spreading’) offers numerouspossibilities for dynamic expression of open, or mesh-like surfaces

9/ south pacific X

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

The transition to Plastic Beach requires navigating through the sticky gloop of oil and tar from a million untold disasters, so you’re gonna need a map... re-imagined here as an etheral glowing stage backdrop of mysterious globular contours...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

the backdrop surface itself could be subjected to parametricinvestigations to find an optimised shape and scale

once the vector field forms have been used to create a map-like image, it is given depth and then made into planar slices

in section the flat contour sliceshave soft glowing lights between themwhich ooze a soothing atmosphericglow

Experimentation with vector fields creates forms with a sense of movement that are highly appealing when coloured and contouredproud of main surface recessed from main surface or ‘floating’

10/ contours

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

“did you like the show? it was called Planet Earth”... slices of that planet, or perhaps another, hug the stage in this depiction of an abstracted jagged landscape... exactly the sort of desolate place that Gorillaz prefer to roam...

red - suggested variables /// grasshopper potential

planar slices versus contour ‘ribbons’ in 2D or 3D

development of contoured landscape

much investigation could be made into varieties of section planes - whether in theconventional axes, rotated, or even curved

Contoured landscapes can be suggested and expressed with great vibrancy

image from “Feel Good Inc.” video

different boundary conditions

lighting is placed between the slicesto create an ambient glow

slices could stack forefficient transportation

potential potential

IDES2040 FUTURE MAKING///ASSIGNMENT ONESTAGED ARCHITECTURE for

SAM CARTER 21642754

A Gorillaz stage set should acknowledge their incongruous but engaging blending of the organic and the synthesised.

The sketch of the chosen design depicts the stage architecture as uniformly arranged rows of overhead boxes - coloured, lit, decorated, rotated, void or otherwise - however, it is easy to imagine the potential of parametric experiments in the overall form (and the objects within it) to veer into greatly more dynamic and energetic territory. In this manner, the chosen design might yet inherit appealing attributes of the other, un-selected designs.

It is the design which exhibits the clearest fundamental elements of potential

SAM CARTER 21642754

>>>WEEK ONE

>>>WEEK TWO

>>>WEEK THREE, FOUR

>>>WEEK FIVE

>>>WEEK SIX

>>>WEEK SEVEN

>>>WEEK EIGHT

RESEARCH the grasshopper/rhino

techniques that will be used

PLAY with/ UNDERSTAND the tools;

start developing the design

TEST/ RESOLVE the design within

the digital environment

REFINE the design and SELECT a

suitable prototyping method

PREPARE the digital model for

prototyping and EXECUTE

RENDERING and DOCUMENTATION

CONTINGENCY and PRESENTATION of the

completed design and documentation

PROJECT PLAN