A
Matters – Grandis Pavillon and Grandis Acoustics
Researcher
Isak Worre Foged
Research Unit
Center for Material Studies - CEMAS
At the Center of Material Studies (CEMAS) we look at the collected whole, and our research moves across materials and areas of expertise.
We explore everything from nature fibers and biopolymers to minerals and composites to understand how we can use architecture and design to promote direct positive effects for both the quality of life of the individual and the balance of our planet.
We develop new knowledge alongside new methods and demonstration projects that question the established approaches. We also bring theories and practical approaches to the table that meet the foundational and adopted research questions.
This means that we practically always find ourselves in collaboration with external partners whose focus spans from material science, computer science, psychology, and physiology to leading corporations within architecture, design, engineering science, production, agriculture, and robot technology.
Isak Worre Foged, Professor
Research motivation
The interplay between people, materials, and environments is simultaneously natural and constructed.
That is what fascinates me. More accurately how thermal and acoustic environments are defined by us humans and how we simultaneously are defined by those same environments.
I see the thermodynamic conditions as critical for understanding us as people.
That is what fascinates me. More accurately how thermal and acoustic environments are defined by us humans and how we simultaneously are defined by those same environments.
I see the thermodynamic conditions as critical for understanding us as people.
Acoustic sample measurement setup. Photo: Isak Worre Foged.
Grandis Pavillon based on Abies Grandis wood species design for thermal modulation between inside and outside environments. Photo: Isak Worre Foged
Grandis pavillon. Photo: Isak Worre Foged.
Poto: Isak Worre Foged.
Acoustic wall assembly. Photo: Isak Worre Foged.
Internal partners
Alex J. Buckthal (Research Assistant), Ryan O’Connor (Research Assistant), Gengmu Ruan (Postdoc)
External partners
DTU Compute
Bibliography
Bibliography
Open Access
[1]
I. WorreFoged, M. Sparre-Petersen, and V. Fragkia, ‘Rearticulated Architectural Glass - A computational method and model for the organisation of reused glass’, in eCAADe Data-Driven Intelligence, O. Kontovourkis, MC. Phocas, and G. Wurzer, Eds, Nicosia: eCAADe, 2024, pp. 235–244. doi: 10.52842/conf.ecaade.2024.1.235.
[2]
I. Worre Foged, F. T. Hansen, and V. Fragkia, ‘Therma Testa’, in Habits Of The Anthropocene: Scarcit Y And Abundance In A Post-Material Economy, A. Crawford, N. Diniz, R. Becket, J. Vanucch, and M. Swackhamer, Eds, Association for Computer Aided Design in Architecture (ACADIA), 2023, pp. 258–269.
[3]
G. Ruan and I. W. Foged, ‘Hybrid wood species design for structural elements: experimental investigations at two scales’, Construction and Building Materials, vol. 540, p. 147562, Sep. 2026, doi: 10.1016/j.conbuildmat.2026.147562.
[4]
S. Pain, ‘How to Dress a Column’, in Built Environment Additive Manufacturing 2022, Nov. 2022, pp. 76–82. [Online]. Available: https://be-am.de/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/BE-AM_Booklet_2022.pdf
[5]
F. T. Hansen, ‘Human-Material Dialogues Through the Use of Robotics: Embodied Craft Learning in an Architectural Educational Context Exploring Patterns in Clay’, Formakademisk, vol. 16, no. 4, Sep. 2023, doi: 10.7577/formakademisk.5442.
[6]
I. W. Foged and M. B. Jensen, ‘Structural design by density compositions of poplar deadwood’, in Structures and Architecture, M. Rinke and M. F. Hvejsel, Eds, London: CRC Press, Jun. 2025, pp. 729–736. doi: 10.1201/9781003658641-88.
[7]
N. Elsgaard, Y.-W. Yen, and I. W. Foged, ‘Algorithmic Nesting of Spalted Poplar: Material-Informed Methods for Computational Wood-Thermal Design’, in Humanistic Computation and Intelligence, 2026, pp. 607–614. [Online]. Available: https://caadria.org/new/wp-content/Downloads/CAADRIA2026_Volume-2.pdf#page=624
Not Open Access
[1]
I. Worre Foged and A. Scaffidi, ‘A Design and Fabrication Method for Hemp Based Acoustic Elements’, in Co-creating the Future: Inclusion in and through Design, eCAADe, Sep. 2022, pp. 101–110.
[2]
I. Worre Foged, ‘Acoustic Tectonics’, TAD - Technology | Architecture + Design, vol. 7, no. 2, pp. 232–243, 2023, doi: 10.1080/24751448.2023.2245726.
[3]
V. Fragkia, I. Worre Foged, and A. Pasold, ‘Predictive Information Modelling: Machine Learning Strategies for Material Uncertainty’, TAD - Technology | Architecture + Design, vol. 5, no. 2, pp. 163–176, Oct. 2021, doi: 10.1080/24751448.2021.1967057.
