Floppy Logic: Experimenting in the Territory Between Architecture, Fashion and Textile

Description

Floppy Logic is an exploration into the 'architecture' of fashion and textiles, and how the concepts, aesthetics, techniques and construction of this architecture might be understood and used to design and fabricate objects and space differently. A key concept here is the Floppy, defined as a quality in material that requires extraneous support to produce architecture. Floppy generally refers to fabric but can also refer to any material that fails when there is not enough support, as is the case with sheet materials when the span between supports exceeds a certain length. Floppy Logic uses a material palette that has been selected for its aesthetic and tactile nature. These materials are typically used superficially and do not have structural qualities to allow them to be applied to the scale of buildings. By exploring form through material play, as fashion designers do with draping fabric over a body, this book expands on approaches to architecture that consider form, structure, skin and enclosure as separate steps.

Leanne Zilka is a nationally and internationally recognized academic and practicing architect who directs an award winning practice, ZILKA Studio and teaching in the architecture program at RMIT University. Leanne has a multidisciplinary approach to both practice and academia drawing on research outside of architecture that includes science, engineering, fashion and textile design and applying it to the practice of architecture. Leannes work focuses on material innovation, using cross-disciplinary knowledge, industry, local government and external research bodies to assist in the application of new and existing materials in novel ways to architecture. The research has seen the deployment of existing materials to new application as well as new materials to existing applications, expanding the functions of materials. Leannes work has been awarded through industry awards, featured in publications and presented at conferences and in exhibitions.