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Storytelling

For this I wanted to depict embracing failure and the process of continuous trying through a video without dialogue. I drew a storyboard before I started filmed and edited my video with the intention making it a silent yet cohesive story of me trying a new medium which in this case was origami. A minute long video under the title “Embrace the climb”

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Biomaterials

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Body & Form

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Generative drawings

Here’s a video I recorded that includes all 6 sketches:

Screenshots of the sketches:

Sketch 1:

Sketch 2:

Sketch 3:

Sketch 4:

Sketch 5:

Sketch 6:

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Microcontrollers and Sensors

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Kinetic systems

After CNC Manufacturing I attached these joints to my prototype so it folds and displays the motion I want it to do.

The joints on my prototype act as a way help replicate the movement of petals when its time to allow or deny themselves the sunshine.

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CNC Manufacturing

In this part of the process we had to take it from rhino onto the laser cutter so we can get on with the physical part of the project.

From here it was easy as I have used a laser cutter before and went through a similar process. It looked very refined and I already had a good idea of what I was doing with it next.

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Algorithmic design

This part of the process is preparing the drawing and turning it from just a paper prototype to 2d model on grasshopper. Beginning with developing it on grasshoppers to then get it onto Rhino.

The first part of the process was the definitely hard to grasp in the beginning but through trial and error and talking to colleagues and  I was able to complete the task after a while. 

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Self Shading

The aim of this task is to design and create a paper prototype of a 20cm x 20cm tile that can shade itself from Dubai’s sun.

Originally I found the concept hard and very foreign to me as I have never really practiced origami. So I decided to watch different videos and and did some research on origami.

I made over 20 origami prototypes and here are some of the early ones which later slowly developed into more triangular shapes

I found it challenging to make them physically so I started experimenting I chose to make digital renditions with the use of AI to find interesting ones to replicate.

I researched how different organisms protect themselves from the sun in places were the climate is hot. From camels to cacti to desert beetles, I looked out how they adapt to the non cloudy nature of their environments. I found that through a form of movement called “nyctinasty” certain plants move leaves, petals, and sometimes their entire stems to adjust to sunlight. For some plants its used to open up and accept Sunlight since their thickness wouldn’t allow them to get the nutrients they needed if they stayed covered up, and for other plants its the opposite. A great example are tulips and lotuses which served as an excellent form of inspiration for the concept I was developing.

After multiple sketches and tests, my final origami prototype was a tetrahedron shaped flower-like shape that I imagined would open up or close based on the environmental conditions. The triangles form together to self shade the structure behind it while also maintaining an aesthetic that resembles a plant’s leaves.

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Material (In)formation

By: Mohammad Almarri

The knowledge we hold of different material is the base of our understanding in design. Utilizing specific materials for different purposes is essential in turning something simple to something special. There is something very human in trying to maximize aesthetics and utility from the materials that are around us.