BENDING SPACE WITH NICOLA BECK

Groundbreaking design and approach with Austrian Nicola Beck.

  Nicola Beck is a designer who is constantly seeking to push boundaries. The projects on which she works are as eclectic as the opportunities afforded someone so talented. Whether working with academic institutions, globally recognized shoe brands, or any of the host of international clients who seek out her talent and artistic ideas; Beck has cultivated a career which allows her to vacillate among mediums to present her interpretations of modern design and their uses. In simplest terms, Nicola embodies the idea of the person who is building a better mousetrap. Sometimes her work requires massive interaction and captures the attention of a culture (as it did with her Adidas Tubular Campaign) and sometimes it requires solitary work brought by a focus on the Alpine Mountains. In a very cerebral and paradigm shifting project, Beck worked with the Doppelmayr Garaventa Group to investigate the potentials of a space with more than one function; one in which the change in use was not achieved by moving parts but simply by entering the space from an opposite site. This changing space hierarchy produced a completely different reading of the program. The results of this project could be applicable to the way in which humans utilize and inhabit different structures. This is the polar opposite of creating awareness of new products and is a prime example of how Beck challenges herself to expand the ways she is able to use her skill set as a designer in the modern world.

  To even begin the process of understanding what Nicola was hoping to achieve through her idea and design, one must comprehend some basic understanding of physical space/structures and our view of them. The most essential of these is “organism versus mechanic assemblage.” A "machinic assemblage" is a theory by Gilles Deleuze and Felix Guattari. The machinic assemblage is the opposite of an organism. An “organism” is an enclosed system where every part has a fixed meaning and you cannot add or remove anything. A “machanic assemblage” is more flexible. The parts in a machinic assemblage have meaning because of the relationship with other parts. It is an organization where you can add and remove parts. As an example: The game of chess is an organism. Every individual figure has a meaning, there is a set of rules, and a fixed number of pieces. You cannot add or remove elements. In Chess, the pieces have to be physically moved to create new conditions and changes. The game of tic tac toe is similar to a machinic assemblage. The individual pieces have no meaning, there can be an endless number of pieces and meaning is only achieved by bringing multiple pieces together. In tic tac toe the pieces are never moved but adding one piece can change the meaning of all other pieces.

  While many of today’s multifunctional spaces are empty and have no specific intent or meaning, Nicola wanted to research and prove that the possibility of multifunctional capabilities and purpose could exist. Designing, theorizing, and testing these ideas, Beck focused these on a multifunctional transportation knot between several skiing resorts in the Austrian Alpes. These towns were cut off from each other during the winter and are located where extreme environmental changes during the summer and winter season demand flexible program.

  Nicola was responsible for researching the theoretical principles and design of the facility in the Austrian Alpes. In order to prove that these theoretical principles would work in real world applications, she simulated these shifting conditions and uses in a virtual environment. By creating artificial situations with varying access points and different levels of usage, she was able to prove that the function of a space is not a given but changing based on perspective and use. These findings have the potential to challenge and replace the idea of multi-functionality by moving parts or empty rooms. In layman’s terms, in a role that is part God, part psychologist, and part architect, Beck set about to challenge and prove that some of the most difficult weather conditions on the planet are not the determining factor for the approach and frequency of how we use a certain physical space.

  Beck simulated the movement of people and other shifting conditions in order analyze their effect on a space and its use. Simulating the directional movement in winter from one skiing resort to another and comparing this with the movement in a building from space to space, Nicola was able to understand how to reinterpret its use. She also created algorithms that would simulate different room organizations to analyze how the use would change. 3D animation software was implemented to visualize these movement patterns and to derive spatial organizations from it. Explaining why this approach was so vital, Nicola notes, “For this kind of project virtual simulations are crucial. I was dealing with changing conditions and movement. To build physical models of different organizations would take months and months.

After analyzing the digital output, I shifted to physical models to visualize spatial qualities, different perspectives, and material changes. We are learning from simulations and are able to see the effects of a huge number of variables quickly. But the final product has to deal with real world limitations and is being shaped by the environment.”

  The overall concept of this study and the results are applicable to almost every aspect of modern life in all societies. In a world which spends much of its focus on the possibilities of virtual space and social interaction that takes place online, the very concept of how space is used and the purpose of it is subject to new interpretation. Through this research it became clear that the idea of architecture as a rigid form which cannot change is too simplistic. In truth,  changing environmental conditions are not a problem but rather an opportunity. This approach results in flexibility, more options, and multifunctional opportunities. It also increases the complexity of the design process since the designer will deal with changing conditions. Architects, designers, and the public will all benefit from the new understanding and creative concepts that ensue. Proud of the positive potential proven by her study, Beck confirms, “The idea that physical objects and their function are dependent on context opens up a lot of new opportunities and could potentially change our methods for dealing with issues like lack of space, lack of resources, and unforeseen changes. I’d like to see a change in the status quo which currently accepts the idea of changing programs from day to nighttime requires physically moving parts to change a space.”