Material Reading — An Exercise in Perception

Volos, Greece, 2024

Collaborators: Maria Vrontisi, Univerity of Thessaly

Learning about circular principles and incorporating them into future building practices is crucial for a more sustainable future. Reusing existing materials is central to the concept of circular construction and fundamentally reshaping our approach to architecture and engineering.
Material reading, which involves understanding a component's propensity; deconstruction, which involves understanding the tectonic nature of assemblies; and physical sketching, which involves exploring how to build with reclaimed materials, are key methods in developing a new pedagogy of material literacy for architects and engineers.

The students of the Department of Architecture and Engineering of the University of Thessaly in Volos, Greece, received a comprehensive one-and-a-half-day boot camp on material reading, deconstruction, and physical sketching. This boot camp served as a practical skill builder to inform their work in the design studio, where they designed a material hub for the city of Volos.
During the boot camp, students engaged in hands-on workshops that allowed them to practice material reading, deconstruction, and physical sketching in an educational context. They learned to analyze various reclaimed materials, thoughtfully consider their applications, and creatively activate them in small-scale structures.