Blobitecture
'Blobitecture', also known as 'blobism', is a term given to a post-modern architectural style characterised by curved and rounded building shapes, or 'blob architecture'. Blobitecture buildings appear to have an organic form that is soft and free-flowing, yet comes together to produce a complex whole.
The design of buildings has historically been limited by the performance of materials found in nature or easily manufactured from available materials. With the modern capability of technology to supply entirely 'artificial' complex substances, with unique performance characteristics the range of possible design forms has grown considerably.
Architecture radicals, such as Archigram in the 1960s, Buckminster Fuller and the deconstructivists, began to design unusual, inflatable and 'plastic' buildings that exploited this potential, and sometimes were even beyond the structural possibilities of the time.
However, it was in the 1990s, with the wide-spread adoption of computer-aided design (CAD) that buildings adopting unconventional geometric shapes, free of right-angles, became practical. The architect Greg Lynn coined the term 'blobitecture', which he based on the software feature that created Binary Large Objects.
Some of the most prominent examples of blobitecture include:
De Admirant Entrance Building, Eindhoven
Selfridges Buildings, Birmingham
Metropol Parasol, Seville
Eden Project, Cornwall
Kunsthaus Graz (see top image)
Experience Music Project, Seattle
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
Finalists for 2024 CIOB Awards revealed
80 construction leaders and companies from across the UK.
Health and Safety Training for Construction Employers
A brief run through essential training tips from a user.
3D Laser Scanning in Building Construction
A comprehensive guide from a Cohesive BIM wiki user.
BIM for structural reinforcement modelling
From the basics to the future from our Cohesive BIM wiki.
ECA skills recharge at the House of Commons
As electrical sector feels skills shortage bite.
The impact of pandemic and new legislation on courses
CIOB Academy’s course take-up inked to external factors.
An artist, philanthropist and ex-Army helicopter pilot
Q and A with self-representing artist, Hannah Shergold.
Building Safety Regulator appoints permanent director
And publishes three-year strategic plan.
Update on the Energy Savings Opportunity Scheme (ESOS)
Introducing changes to make it more effective from 2024.
2023 CIOB photography competition
Shortlist announced for 2023 public choice award vote.
The last of the Victorians. Book review.
Grimsby's Kasbah: where’s that?
An exotic name that is shrouded in mystery.
This weeks guest editor, Ankita Dwivedi of Firstplanit.
Fropm practice to research and the business of materials.
Terms, histories, theories and practices.
Types of work to existing buildings - repurposing of buildings
Alteration and everything else before demolition.