Composite Wing

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RESEARCH BACKGROUND: Composite Wing is a large-scale composite fibre installation developed by Snooks, exploring the relationship between robotic fabrication, composite materials and algorithmic design. It is part of Snooks' larger research trajectory to develop and articulate a behavioural approach to architectural design that draws from the logic of swarm intelligence and operates through multi-agent algorithms. RESEARCH CONTRIBUTION: This work is an experiment on the compression of surface, structure and ornament into a single irreducible form. It develops collaborative robotic strategies, where multiple robots work together on the fabrication of a complex form. The complexity of the composite fibre installation is made possible through innovative robotic fabrication techniques. It comprises an intricate network of veins embedded within its thin translucent fiber-composite surface called 'agentBodies,' designed through multi-agent algorithms and the logic of swarm intelligence, and which operates as structural beams within the surface. This project enables a reconceptualisation of matter within the design process, a shift from form being imposed upon inert matter, to matter playing an active role in the emergence of form and organisation. RESEARCH SIGNIFICANCE: The significance of this work is attested to through its inclusion in the 'Robotic Future' exhibition at Minsheng Art Museum in Shanghai, alongside a small selection of 18 works by leading international architects engaged in innovative robotic fabrication research. 'Robotic Future' was part of 10th Shanghai Biennale's City Pavilions program, and was curated by the scholar, critic and independent curator Zhu Ye. The exhibition, and Snooks' project, was reviewed in Global Times (China). The work was also presented, in a different context, at 'The Future is Here' (RMIT Design Hub, 2014) - a touring exhibition from London Design Museum - where it featured as a vital part of the exhibition design.