Concrete as Liquid Stone: An Exploration of Ruled Surface Geometries

By: Dustin Schipper
Course: ARCH 5521 - Material Investigations: Concrete
Instructor: Sharon Roe

Project Team: Travis Herr, Cara Prosser, Dustin Schipper

This project was part of coursework for the Concrete Studio Module taught within the school of architecture.  This course was primarily comprise of a half semester hands on material investigation conducted in small groups with a focus on the tectonic qualities of concrete.  Our group set out to explore the idea that concrete is liquid stone frozen in time.  As a source of inspiration for sophisticated architectural applications of stone, we chose Gaudi’s work on La Sagrada Familia.

Gaudi’s later work focused heavily on the use of ruled surface geometries, so that his forms could be mathematically described, rather than exist in his mind alone.  In the first two weeks of our investigation we created physical and digital models to further our understanding of ruled surfaces.  Using Grasshopper and Rhino, digital models of several common ruled surfaces were created.  

Common Ruled Surfaces

Also modeled were two common geometries from La Sagrada Familia which we were interested in investigating further; the body of the columns from the main naive, and the hyperboloid windows on the facade.

Sagrada Familia Window and Column Geometry

As we moved forward from the computer based modeling processes, it became clear that it would be critical to embrace the flow of concrete to capture the tectonic qualities we were interested in.  While the fabric formwork used in our casting process always began as pure ruled surfaces, the hydrostatic force of the concrete would manipulate these initial shapes into a form that captured the liquid quality inherent in a poured material.

Final Column and Formwork Inspired by Ruled Surfaces