Charles D. Jones is a principal of One to One Design, LLC., a full service architecture + consulting firm in New Orleans, LA and currently serves as the Director of Digital Fabrication at the Tulane School of Architecture. After receiving his Bachelor of Architecture from Louisiana State University in 2006, Charles worked for Gehry Technologies in Los Angeles, California before accepting a position at the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates as the Material + Digital Lab Instructor and adjunct lecturer. His notable contributions include the procurement, installation, and management of a multi-million dollar digital fabrication facility, in conjunction with his integral digital design seminars. The creation of this facility played a key role in establishing an ongoing academic relationship with Gehry Technologies of Abu Dhabi through the implementation of integral computer-aided, parametric design techniques.
Designing and managing two fabrication facilities are amongst my most noteworthy contributions to the maker movement as a whole. Exposure to the tools available in these facilities, from the rudimentary to the robotic,allow students’ design ideas to both traditional and contemporary methods of making.
I get excited thinking about what’s to come; every individual that learns a tool, whether it’s programming a 6-axis robotic arm to sculpt sand or building your own steamer to bend wood, has the potential to bring a new perspectives to design methodology.
My primary research deals with fabrication processes closely associated with 3-axis CNC milling. Although this technology has existed for decades in the military, space, and transportation industries, it’s only in recent years that it’s become more accessible as a fabrication tool in architectural design. Guiding this tool to enhance the expressive and performative qualities of materials has been a driving force behind my professional and academic career.
Integrating digital fabrication technology seamlessly into the design process is a constant topic of discussion within our school. While our curriculum has always strived to bridge the gap between designing and making, it is no surprise this technology is changing the way we approach the design process.
Our curriculum is restructuring digital media and fabrication from isolated seminars into smaller modules to support specific design studio projects. This will cultivate an environment that enriches the design process by allowing students to engage in designing and making simultaneously.
The perfect concoction of creativity and communication. Digital fabrication technology is accessible as is the ability to share ideas across a global network. The opportunity to share, test, and document ideas is more valuable than working in a singular, confined vacuum. Web based forums can now generate instant, active, and constructive feedback. Privatized, ‘intellectual property’ has given way to magnitude of success we are have in solving problems collectively through the sharing of ‘open source’ information.
Millhaus, Tulane’s CNC lab, has played an integral role for departments within the University other than the School of Architecture since it was established in 2013. Sculpting of complex form and repeatability are attributes that allow this technology to be used in collaboration with biomedical engineering students in prosthetics research. Speed and precision facilitated the construction of an outdoor activity pavilion by working closely with the Tulane City Center to design and fabricate over 400 custom aluminum connections in one day. The quality of execution on these projects demonstrates that the CNC lab functions as a university wide resource and a catalyst for continued interdisciplinary collaboration.
The perfect concoction of creativity and communication. Digital fabrication technology is accessible as is the ability to share ideas across a global network. The opportunity to share, test, and document ideas is more valuable than working in a singular, confined vacuum. Web based forums can now generate instant, active, and constructive feedback. Privatized, ‘intellectual property’ has given way to magnitude of success we are have in solving problems collectively through the sharing of ‘open source’ information.
Fostering a balance of training and educating is the key to ensuring academic institutions can keep pace with the technology boom. Providing training and access to the proper tools is critical in any trade; though, acquiring a deeper understanding of the tools’ influence in a larger context, is as important as mastering the tool itself. Teaching making as both a technical and theoretical tool ensures students will be equipped to excel in academia and beyond.
The attitude that a student possesses while learning depends heavily on the structure of the content being presented. Indifference and complacency set in when course work or assignments are not presented in a way that engages and challenges the student to grow. Making, as a pedagogy, fosters ownership and sense of purpose by pushing students to find solutions through designing and making simultaneously.
Making is not a neutral act! Do not become the blind maker. Making is an inseparable aspect of social progress. Challenge yourself to not only appreciate the task at hand but think critically about the influence any singular idea can have on our environment.