Research - LABA - EPFL

Research
laba manifest - august 2012
laba merges analytical research with creative design, seeking to develop and
refine methodologies which produce ideal solutions for specific programs,
locations, technologies or conditions. Many critical issues influencing
contemporary territories have enormous spatial implications, yet are seldom
addressed by architects. laba investigates these issues.
The pressure of immigration into European fringe cities (Athens- City of
Immigrants /Architecture of Integration lapa 2010/11) and the urbanization
of the ocean (A Territorial Constitution for the Barents Sea, laba 2011/12) are
two examples.
Technological developments such as GIS allow architects to investigate
urban development from any distance. Vast resources of information and
data are available and accessible. Sophisticated environmental modelling is
already possible through this technology. Ultimately, environmental factors
influencing cities can be designed and tested.
At the same time, to really understand urban phenomena architects need to
do extensive field work. The close-up view of urban situations at the human
scale, and the “gods-eye” view inform each other respectively and are
mutually dependent. Coupling these perspectives and utilizing the available
technological resources reveal the true nature of a particular urban context,
and enable the architect to arrive at specific local solutions for global tasks.
Through the development of this set of skills, laba aims to strengthen the
architect’s position within the urban debate. This approach also informs the
teaching programme.
Currently laba maintains a broad research base, drawing on experience gained
from specific design locations where a new urban or territorial condition is
manifested. Two particular areas of interest are;
- design as mediator of the urban context
- digital tools and their influence on the design and production of architecture.
laba’s research is currently carried out by one post-doctoral position, two
doctorates and one research assistant. Further to this, laba is committed to
the development of an interdisciplinary design doctorate “Complex Design”
at the EPFL through the SNF programme “ProDoc” (application in progress).
Two further research proposals have been submitted in 2012: CH16M2048
(1 doctoral position) and WiuUrbis (Waste Impact on Environmental and Urban
Design in Romania) part of the SNF Romanian-Swiss Research Programme
(two 50% positions) where both partners (EPFL LABA and UVT-DG) aim at
identifying the best solutions for environmental and urban design in Romania,
which will be used primarily by decision makers in Romania but also by
research circles in both Switzerland and Romania.
The project’s solutions are supported by GIS and Remote Sensing techniques
and incorporate several methods: (a) volunteer mobile information (VGI),
(b) GIS mapping, and (c) 3D computer simulations. The other solutions are
offered by architects, who will create waste-management-based urban
design models. The cumulative solutions will contribute, on the one hand,
to a better understanding of the problem and help raising awareness among
stakeholders and, on the other, to the creation of an implementable urban and
environmental design of the selected locations.
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