The realization of complex curved surfaces was a major challenge in the past decades in the field of architecture. Alternative modes for the shaping of materials is the subject of various lines of research, aiming for sustainable fabrication with the investment of minimal energy/effort. Supported by the new understanding of materiality in the architectural field, a vivid interest is found in the generative power of the material itself, harnessing inherent material properties for the generation of form. While traditionally builders and architects attempt to work with stress-free materials, nature often develop form and function through mechanisms of stress-informed materials. Auto-morphing by internal material stresses, or material frustration, is taken in this research from the physics lab towards the world of architecture. This shift of material and scale is explored, demonstrating the potential for the generation of new forms by induced and controlled material frustration.

Dr. Arielle Blonder is an Architect, combining academic research and practice across disciplines and scales. She is involved in experimental material research in various platforms, to teaching and various artistic explorations. She specializes in fiber composites (FRP) both in industrial applications and academic research, and her PhD at the Technion Faculty of Architecture and Town Planning developed the integration of Textile Materiality in architectural FRP. Today she collaborates with the non-linear physics lab at The Hebrew University as a post-doctoral fellow, searching for application of intrinsic formations by geometrical incompatibility at the architectural scale.