"Architectures of Weaving"

Textile is not a material, but a structure - entangled of different fiber materials. It is an architecture in itself. Its hierarchically designed components allow for a material based performance that can be programmed on all scales from fiber to fabric. What potential has such textile thinking for architectural design and applications ? How soft might architecture become ? The talk will give insights into current experimental research and prototyping originating in the research Cluster Matters of Activity and Weissensee School of Art and Design, Berlin.

Christiane Sauer is an Architect and Professor for Material Design at Weißensee School of Art and Design Berlin. In her work she bridges material experimentation and implementation focussing on textile structures and smart materials. She heads the research facility DXM - Design Experiment Material and is member of the Cluster of Excellence “Matters of Activity. Image Space Material” at Humboldt Universität zu Berlin. She has been practising and lecturing internationally in Europe and the US. Her latest book „Architectures of Weaving“ was published with jovis, 2022.

"Designing with Air-Pressure"

Light-weight canopies, air-tight biospheres, shape adapting bodies, portable dwellings or almost invisible barriers - inflatable constructions are designed in agile and unconventional ways, and so are the spaces and atmospheres they provide. Obtaining their constructive stability by pressurized air, these atmospheres are fragile and require particularly careful designing and handling. In order to retain their structural integrity, the use of an inflatable and its self-perpetuation, its accessibility and airflow must be compatible. How are bubbles performed, what is their potential for application and how is the conjunction of a retainment of overpressure and the defining of accessible space designed? The talk suggests a design-theoretical framework for working with inflatables and offers a notion of their potential.

Albert Tschechne, born in Hamburg and graduated in Architecture and Urban Design from Politecico Milano (M.Sc.) and TU Berlin (B.Sc.). Worked on small scale, urban and rural architectural Projects with different offices in Berlin and on Pavilions as well as big scale cultural Projects and Competitions with SANAA in Tokyo, Budapest and Milan. Various pavilions and small constructions with raumlabor Berlin since 2021. Planned and produced inflatable projects and graduated from Politecnico Milano with the work ‘Designing with air-pressure’ (mentored by Prof. Nina Bassoli and Beatrice Balducci, both architectural curators at Triennale Milano).

Material Dialogues lecture series explores how different materials shape spatial practices from various professional perspectives. Each session brings together two to three speakers to discuss their approaches to specific materials or techniques, followed by a discussion that highlights their differing practices.

By considering the diverse roles materials play in design and construction, as well as their environmental and cultural significance, the series aims to foster thoughtful conversations about materiality across different contexts and scales.

The series is co-hosted by Bergen School of Architecture (BAS) and Bergen Society of Architects (BAF)