Tonkin Liu at the RA Summer Exhibition 2021

We are delighted to be part of this year’s Summer/Winter exhibition with two model entries. Due to the pandemic, this is the second annual RA Summer Exhibition in a row that – despite keeping its name – is a strictly autumnal affair, running over the closing months of the year. The exhibition is now open from tomorrow, 22nd September until the 2nd January 2022.

On display is our scale model of the Rain Basket, which is part of the redesign we’re working on for Grosvenor Square Gardens. Water is an important part of the designs. We see it as both a resource and an opportunity to improve experience and wellbeing of people that use the Square. Water will allow the structures in the Square to come alive with sound, texture, and movement. Located at the western side where the path meets the Open Garden, the two waterfall canopies would fill with water and bring the Square alive with sounds whilst the spaces below can be used for seating and shelter from the rain (or sun!). By collecting water at a height and encouraging it to travel down the canopy structure, as well as introducing an active pump system, the cascading water will create a sensory experience.

Also on display, is a Hex-mould Mass Customised super-thin shell construction from the Automated Concrete research project we’ve been working on with Bath and Cambridge Universities. In our story, automated concrete construction equates to automated mould technology. Taking inspiration from branching structures and hexagonal forms found in nature, we propose a holistic approach to automated concrete construction. We utilise the fluid nature of concrete to create a parametrically regulated, adaptable and responsive system. The reusable mould is an automated system connected to computational analysis software to make a direct correlation between structure and form. The unitised system works at a number of scales to create easily transportable prefabricated components, which can be erected on site to form a groin vault system. The hexagonal pin bed mould provides a finer degree of detail resulting in a light catching organic structure.

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