Bionic design: JORIS LAARMAN

“Joris Laarman’s Bone Chair revolutionized the design process by using an algorithm to translate the complexity, proportion and functionality of human bone and tree growth into a chair form. The algorithm, originally used by the German car industry, enabled him to reduce and strengthen his designs by optimizing material allocation, weight and stability, while minimizing material input. In his own words, he sculpted “using mother nature’s underlying codes.”

Bionic design is the combination of the latest technological processing methods and organic form. The Bone Chair (2006) by the Netherlands designer Joris Laarman, was a prime example of this trend. Inspired by the growth of bones, this elegant high tech sculpture was created with the help of a special tool developed by General Motors Engineering Europe.

For their recent installation at the High Museum in Atlanta, Joris Laarman Lab has programmed a robot arm to build ornamented side tables based on a digital blueprint. The following video will give you a behind the scenes look at the Laarman Lab’s process. The robot builds the table upside down, from the top to the legs. The installation explores the concept of pixels in design as well as a play on our visual perception of objects.

 

Click here to visit the official Joris Laarman Lab website

Source: Friedman Benda, NYC