A computation design method for architectural artifacts adapted from traditional Kagome bamboo basketry techniques

Abstract

This study is a digital form-finding and manual fabrication experiment in woven architectural design, with one traditional weaving style, Kagome, used to scale the craft up into an architectural-scale bamboo woven artifact. Kagome is a trihexagonal pattern employed in traditional bamboo basketry as a triaxial weaving system, resulting in an object with a self-bracing capacity without the use of fasteners owing to its interlacing lattices. Although existing studies and tools have addressed triaxial weaving design and representation, the current consideration of the advantages of weaving with bamboo is insufficient. To address this research gap, this study develops a computational design method based on studies on bamboo basketry. This allows for the representation and exploration of design geometries using combinations of regular triangular meshes for the fabrication of Kagome woven bamboo artifacts. A full-scale mock-up was fabricated to evaluate the effectiveness of the method. The mock-up demonstrated the self-bracing properties of Kagome, but there were discrepancies between the mock-up and the design. Factors affecting bamboo weaving on an architectural scale have been identified within this study to inform future research on woven bamboo structures.