Digital Decoupage
Digital Decoupage was the second aesthetic experimental course promoted by CRIT-AADE, and it was developed by Prof. Jen-Hwang Ho, Professor at Graduate Institute of Architecture, NYCU. It is another three-stage session course, from observation, digital image manipulation to creative interpretation.
In the first stage, the students took a look at the plants on the campus, observed the patterns of flowers, leaves, veins and branches, and recorded their discoveries with photos, sketches or frottage imprints, which showed their observation of natural science and geometric logics. Next, the students learned to use digital modeling and visual programming software, Rhino 3D and Grasshopper. With simple preset procedures, they could generate solid geometric forms like polygons, pyramids and spheres on the interface, literally see the mathematical order within the natural forms, and realize that with the basics of algorithms, it is possible to create abundant organic forms. Eventually, the results could be compared with the records collected in the first stage. They could also use laser cutting, 3D printing and other technologies to manufacture real products in the digital environment.
A typical course for environment familiarity often starts with introducing the names of objects in a specific environment for identification. However, mostly the perception stayed there and could not be developed further. In the course, Digital Decoupage, we attempted to guide the students to dig more deeply into the meanings underlying names. Whether you know the name of the plant or not, you could still observe its geometric composition and organic order. These “filters” for observation brought some possibilities for aesthetic perception more than identification, which stimulated derivative manipulation and interpretation.