ABSTRACT
the timber seasoning shelter at Hooke Park is the result of a body of material research and experimentation executed by four students of the Architectural Association Design & Make Master of Architecture programme. The building serves a function as an agricultural structure for the storage of raw materials, but also represents the continuation of an ethos of experimental architecture at Hooke Park. The primary driver of the design process combines computational design and fabrication with the inherent structural and manipulable potentials of locally sourced materials. The utilization of local, seemingly low value resources in an innovative manner was a common goal by all involved, across the disciplines of architecture, engineering, education, and forestry. The process of steam bending was conducive to achieving these goals and was coupled with the use of European beech as a building timber. Physical experimentation, proof of concept mock-ups, and mechanical testing were employed to prototype connections, formal arrangements, manufacturing processes, and material behaviour. The architecture is an artefact of prototypical approaches towards local materials, manufacturing, and design.
