This book is about responsive architectures. The project is an exploration of the interconnectedness of what surrounds us. The focus of this collection is on a new generation of interactive systems within science, art and architecture that are based on constantly evolving relationships. Using a wide definition of architecture that includes both built and natural realms, we examine dynamic systems and environments of scales from molecules to cities.
We want to pose the question ‘What does responsiveness mean?’ ‘Responsive’ is used throughout this book to speak of how natural and artificial systems can interact and adapt. Speaking of evolution, we might think of how environments act via natural selection on diverse populations. While that traditional definition is included here, we also want to include conscious action. Responsiveness implies sensitivity. But stability and isolation - as we see it the opposite of sensitivity - are often seen as necessary for analysis of complex systems. In traditional scientific method, sensitivity and exposure to the surroundings can be thought of as disruptive ‘input’ that interferes with traditional working methods. The impulse to create closed systems is not exclusive to science: we could say it runs wherever we hear opposing terms used to describe complex situations: subject/object, self/other, form/function, organic/inorganic, observer/observed, static/dynamic. In the papers of this book we observe art, technology and design dissolving many of these artificial distinctions.
A host of new working methods allow these boundaries to be opened. We want to find strategies for thriving in complex interconnected ecosystems. Nature continues to inspire us: for many of the papers in this collection nature is the fundamental teacher. Biological systems show molecular self-assembly and self-sustainability and serve as a model of the miniature mechanical parts that nanotechnology promises. Organisms at every scale contain networks consisting of multiple parts that operate far outside of thermodynamic equilibrium. Examples of these complex feedback mechanisms are found in modern electronic control systems.
