Klimasymmetry, locating thermal tactility

The Klimasymmetry research project is part of ongoing investigations that ask how the design of a surface emanating radiant heating and cooling can influence the non-visual spatial boundaries created by asymmetrical thermal conditions. This research investigates the nature of the surface as an initiator of a thermal environment in an attempt to locate thermal tactility and the spatial perception according to radiant heat transfer. Surface qualities such as the quantity of area and thermal capacity of the material affects the ability of the panel to emit or absorb electromagnetic radiation, informing the geometry, topography, and location of each panel relative to the human body. The integration of multiple behaviors develops a tectonic language that integrates thermal performance, material behavior, and digital fabrication processes within the architectural surface. The main objective of this research project is the production of a unique prototype capable of revealing a non-visual thermal environment created by an architectural surface. The prototype is developed as a series of radiant panels where the thermal behavior is embedded into the materiality of the surface, providing a method to test the interaction between people and the manufactured object. The surfaces are organized in relation to the physiological thermorceptors within the human body, providing a geometric distribution of the panels. The prototype simultaneously provides the opportunity to research the thermal properties of one of the most ubiquitous materials in the built interior environment, gypsum, as a test to potentially expand the system to the scale of a building. The plastic behavior of gypsum allows the computational design of the surface topography to adapt to the thermal location according to the position on the viewer’s body. The fabrication technique for the gypsum radiant panels integrates automated manufacturing with fabric forming techniques, developing a process that is scalable from small to large deployments of the system.