Asya Ilgun, graduate from Computation in Architecture

The two years spent in Computation in Architecture, KADK were significantly transformative for my academic life and dictative of my design philosophy.

I learned to explore and experiment with the phenomena that make architecture- energy, matter, material, data. Computation became a platform for strengthening my problem solving skills emerging from these complex subjects that every practitioner deals with. But it also became a playground with endless space for creativity. I embraced “research by design” as methodology via realising my design intentions from a prototypical standpoint. I was preoccupied with the Fused Filament Deposition techniques (FDM 3d printing) and designing cohabitation scenarios for social animals - humans, honey bees. 

Right after my graduation on 2016, I became a member of an interdisciplinary research group, Artificial Life Lab (AT) where I had the chance to elaborate on my master’s thesis project together with scientists and engineers. The cross-disciplinary nature of computational design studies familiarised me with a profession that spans across social integration of research to scientific experimentation.

In Artificial Life Lab, we focus experiments with real swarm intelligent animals and also the implementation of our findings in simulated and real robotic swarms. My role in this group is to think of the material interfaces where biology and technology merges.

Currently, I am leading the design,material and fabrication channel of a HORIZON 2020 Future Emergent Technologies research project -a technologically enhanced housing for Honeybees. I am able to apply every single skill I gained throughout my master studies from rapid prototyping, machine programming, data visualisation to broader architectural concept development and public communication via Maker Platforms.

This could only happen with the guided and explorative learning environment in Computation in Architecture. As an architect, I am exploring  the physical boundaries between biological life on different scales and human (and human technology), using digitally driven design and manufacturing which makes it possible to build environments that naturally merges with biological life in ways that has not been possible before.