Engineering the World: Ove Arup and the Philosophy of Total Design

Surprisingly interesting exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum looking at the life and work of Ove Nyquist Arup including his companies and his philosophy of design.

I expected this to be a rather dry exhibition about building but it focused on Arups ideas about total design and the engineer as a creative force. Arup trained as a philosopher and was as interested in the rational of design as in the actual designs themselves. I loved a wall of doodles by him on various agenda’s and sets of minutes. They gave a view of an active creative mind which never seemed to stop.

I loved the section on one of his first projects in England, the penguin pool at London Zoo with its wonderful sweeping ramps. The largest section was on the Sydney Opera House where his company was brought it to work out how to build the iconic roof. This fed into Arup’s ideas that engineers should be included from the design stage of projects to work with architects on how to realise their ideas.

I also liked the last section looking at innovative projects that the company is involved in now. There was a great crowd flow simulation programme which gives simulated pedestrians individual characteristics and gaols and looks at how they might behave on mass in given situations. Also a living façade for a building which is filled with algae, you see it as soon as you come into the show looking like a tank with bubbles in it. Finally the wikihouse, an open source building system which allows people to access, print (3D) and assemble the parts for a house.

Closed on 6 November 2016.

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