http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp
Photo © Guillaume Blanc
Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany
Brooklyn, New York
A small studio deploys computational design and digital fabrication to make inventive structures that define space.
- See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
details
At
first glance, the work of Marc Fornes, founder of Brooklyn-based Marc
Fornes/TheVeryMany, seems more like sculpture than architecture. His
geometrically complex pieces, developed through computational design and
fabrication, include museum installations, public art, and pop-up
environments. They appear to take their cues from natural forms
including those of crustaceans, plants, and wild animals. But Fornes,
who is a native of France but moved to New York in 2006 to work for
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, insists that his approach is that of an
architect rather than a sculptor. TheVeryMany's formal language, he
says, is the product of exploiting curvature to make efficient
structures. “With each project, we are trying to produce space and
structure,” he explains. - See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
Fornes's
objects are usually comprised of thousands of flat elements—hence the
name TheVeryMany. These are cut with a computer numerical control (CNC)
machine from sheets of aluminum and are held together with rivets to
form self-supporting skins. And, although they do not provide shelter in
the conventional sense, the finished works define space and are often
large enough to occupy. One example is Double Agent White, which Fornes
designed and built in 2012 while an artist-in-residence at the Atelier
Calder in Saché, France. Made of weblike aluminum surfaces describing
nine intersecting spheres, it is now at the FRAC Centre in Orléans
(record, October 2013, page 80), where visitors can walk under the
roughly 11-foot-tall canopy, 20 feet in diameter, and circulate around
its supporting “trunks.” - See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
At
first glance, the work of Marc Fornes, founder of Brooklyn-based Marc
Fornes/TheVeryMany, seems more like sculpture than architecture. His
geometrically complex pieces, developed through computational design and
fabrication, include museum installations, public art, and pop-up
environments. They appear to take their cues from natural forms
including those of crustaceans, plants, and wild animals. But Fornes,
who is a native of France but moved to New York in 2006 to work for
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, insists that his approach is that of an
architect rather than a sculptor. TheVeryMany's formal language, he
says, is the product of exploiting curvature to make efficient
structures. “With each project, we are trying to produce space and
structure,” he explains. - See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
At
first glance, the work of Marc Fornes, founder of Brooklyn-based Marc
Fornes/TheVeryMany, seems more like sculpture than architecture. His
geometrically complex pieces, developed through computational design and
fabrication, include museum installations, public art, and pop-up
environments. They appear to take their cues from natural forms
including those of crustaceans, plants, and wild animals. But Fornes,
who is a native of France but moved to New York in 2006 to work for
Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, insists that his approach is that of an
architect rather than a sculptor. TheVeryMany's formal language, he
says, is the product of exploiting curvature to make efficient
structures. “With each project, we are trying to produce space and
structure,” he explains. - See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
Photo © Guillaume Blanc
Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany
Brooklyn, New York
A small studio deploys computational design and digital fabrication to make inventive structures that define space.
- See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
Photo © Guillaume Blanc
Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany
Brooklyn, New York
A small studio deploys computational design and digital fabrication to make inventive structures that define space.
By Joann Gonchar, AIA
At first glance, the work of Marc Fornes, founder of
Brooklyn-based Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany, seems more like sculpture than
architecture. His geometrically complex pieces, developed through
computational design and fabrication, include museum installations,
public art, and pop-up environments. They appear to take their cues from
natural forms including those of crustaceans, plants, and wild animals.
But Fornes, who is a native of France but moved to New York in 2006 to
work for Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, insists that his approach is that
of an architect rather than a sculptor. TheVeryMany's formal language,
he says, is the product of exploiting curvature to make efficient
structures. “With each project, we are trying to produce space and
structure,” he explains.
----- Advertising -----
Fornes's objects are usually comprised of thousands of
flat elements—hence the name TheVeryMany. These are cut with a computer
numerical control (CNC) machine from sheets of aluminum and are held
together with rivets to form self-supporting skins. And, although they
do not provide shelter in the conventional sense, the finished works
define space and are often large enough to occupy. One example is Double
Agent White, which Fornes designed and built in 2012 while an
artist-in-residence at the Atelier Calder in Saché, France. Made of
weblike aluminum surfaces describing nine intersecting spheres, it is
now at the FRAC Centre in Orléans (record, October 2013, page 80), where
visitors can walk under the roughly 11-foot-tall canopy, 20 feet in
diameter, and circulate around its supporting “trunks.”
Although Fornes has not yet completed any buildings, his
projects nevertheless involve a host of practical, real-world concerns.
For instance, TheVeryMany served as executive architect for a pop-up
store at Selfridges in London that was the product of a collaboration
between artist Yayoi Kusama and Louis Vuitton. Here, Fornes had to
devise components that would be small and light enough to easily
maneuver inside the department store, but also large enough to minimize
the need for on-site assembly. The resulting environment, which features
elements reminiscent of pumpkins or sea urchins perforated by Kusama's
signature dots, represents a technical innovation, says Fornes. It is
the first self-supported carbon-fiber shell used in a work of
architecture.
Fornes and his team of five employees—all of whom are
trained as architects—perform almost every stage of the work themselves.
They take each project from conceptual design through development of
fabrication files, and they ultimately assemble the pieces on-site. Only
one step—the cutting and milling—is performed by others. This process,
says Fornes, gives him tight control over the finished product.
TheVeryMany has begun to win more traditional types of
architectural commissions: the firm was recently selected for an
open-air theater in Columbia, Maryland, and has a house under
construction in Fornes's hometown of Strasbourg. Fornes hopes that as
his projects grow in size and complexity, there will still be
opportunities to build smaller-scale pieces. These are the kinds of
projects, he says, that allow him to keep testing new ideas in design
and fabrication.
- See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
Photo © Guillaume Blanc
Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany
Brooklyn, New York
A small studio deploys computational design and digital fabrication to make inventive structures that define space.
By Joann Gonchar, AIA
At first glance, the work of Marc Fornes, founder of
Brooklyn-based Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany, seems more like sculpture than
architecture. His geometrically complex pieces, developed through
computational design and fabrication, include museum installations,
public art, and pop-up environments. They appear to take their cues from
natural forms including those of crustaceans, plants, and wild animals.
But Fornes, who is a native of France but moved to New York in 2006 to
work for Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, insists that his approach is that
of an architect rather than a sculptor. TheVeryMany's formal language,
he says, is the product of exploiting curvature to make efficient
structures. “With each project, we are trying to produce space and
structure,” he explains.
----- Advertising -----
Fornes's objects are usually comprised of thousands of
flat elements—hence the name TheVeryMany. These are cut with a computer
numerical control (CNC) machine from sheets of aluminum and are held
together with rivets to form self-supporting skins. And, although they
do not provide shelter in the conventional sense, the finished works
define space and are often large enough to occupy. One example is Double
Agent White, which Fornes designed and built in 2012 while an
artist-in-residence at the Atelier Calder in Saché, France. Made of
weblike aluminum surfaces describing nine intersecting spheres, it is
now at the FRAC Centre in Orléans (record, October 2013, page 80), where
visitors can walk under the roughly 11-foot-tall canopy, 20 feet in
diameter, and circulate around its supporting “trunks.”
Although Fornes has not yet completed any buildings, his
projects nevertheless involve a host of practical, real-world concerns.
For instance, TheVeryMany served as executive architect for a pop-up
store at Selfridges in London that was the product of a collaboration
between artist Yayoi Kusama and Louis Vuitton. Here, Fornes had to
devise components that would be small and light enough to easily
maneuver inside the department store, but also large enough to minimize
the need for on-site assembly. The resulting environment, which features
elements reminiscent of pumpkins or sea urchins perforated by Kusama's
signature dots, represents a technical innovation, says Fornes. It is
the first self-supported carbon-fiber shell used in a work of
architecture.
Fornes and his team of five employees—all of whom are
trained as architects—perform almost every stage of the work themselves.
They take each project from conceptual design through development of
fabrication files, and they ultimately assemble the pieces on-site. Only
one step—the cutting and milling—is performed by others. This process,
says Fornes, gives him tight control over the finished product.
TheVeryMany has begun to win more traditional types of
architectural commissions: the firm was recently selected for an
open-air theater in Columbia, Maryland, and has a house under
construction in Fornes's hometown of Strasbourg. Fornes hopes that as
his projects grow in size and complexity, there will still be
opportunities to build smaller-scale pieces. These are the kinds of
projects, he says, that allow him to keep testing new ideas in design
and fabrication.
- See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
Photo © Guillaume Blanc
Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany
Brooklyn, New York
A small studio deploys computational design and digital fabrication to make inventive structures that define space.
By Joann Gonchar, AIA
At first glance, the work of Marc Fornes, founder of
Brooklyn-based Marc Fornes/TheVeryMany, seems more like sculpture than
architecture. His geometrically complex pieces, developed through
computational design and fabrication, include museum installations,
public art, and pop-up environments. They appear to take their cues from
natural forms including those of crustaceans, plants, and wild animals.
But Fornes, who is a native of France but moved to New York in 2006 to
work for Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, insists that his approach is that
of an architect rather than a sculptor. TheVeryMany's formal language,
he says, is the product of exploiting curvature to make efficient
structures. “With each project, we are trying to produce space and
structure,” he explains.
----- Advertising -----
Fornes's objects are usually comprised of thousands of
flat elements—hence the name TheVeryMany. These are cut with a computer
numerical control (CNC) machine from sheets of aluminum and are held
together with rivets to form self-supporting skins. And, although they
do not provide shelter in the conventional sense, the finished works
define space and are often large enough to occupy. One example is Double
Agent White, which Fornes designed and built in 2012 while an
artist-in-residence at the Atelier Calder in Saché, France. Made of
weblike aluminum surfaces describing nine intersecting spheres, it is
now at the FRAC Centre in Orléans (record, October 2013, page 80), where
visitors can walk under the roughly 11-foot-tall canopy, 20 feet in
diameter, and circulate around its supporting “trunks.”
Although Fornes has not yet completed any buildings, his
projects nevertheless involve a host of practical, real-world concerns.
For instance, TheVeryMany served as executive architect for a pop-up
store at Selfridges in London that was the product of a collaboration
between artist Yayoi Kusama and Louis Vuitton. Here, Fornes had to
devise components that would be small and light enough to easily
maneuver inside the department store, but also large enough to minimize
the need for on-site assembly. The resulting environment, which features
elements reminiscent of pumpkins or sea urchins perforated by Kusama's
signature dots, represents a technical innovation, says Fornes. It is
the first self-supported carbon-fiber shell used in a work of
architecture.
Fornes and his team of five employees—all of whom are
trained as architects—perform almost every stage of the work themselves.
They take each project from conceptual design through development of
fabrication files, and they ultimately assemble the pieces on-site. Only
one step—the cutting and milling—is performed by others. This process,
says Fornes, gives him tight control over the finished product.
TheVeryMany has begun to win more traditional types of
architectural commissions: the firm was recently selected for an
open-air theater in Columbia, Maryland, and has a house under
construction in Fornes's hometown of Strasbourg. Fornes hopes that as
his projects grow in size and complexity, there will still be
opportunities to build smaller-scale pieces. These are the kinds of
projects, he says, that allow him to keep testing new ideas in design
and fabrication.
- See more at:
http://archrecord.construction.com/features/designvanguard/2013/1312-Marc-Fornes-TheVeryMany.asp#sthash.ZkVGP3lE.dpuf
