Conditioning Elegance: A Design Experiment on Intuition and Analysis

Abstract

This paper offers an assessment of two methods for design-one based on intuitive design skills, the other on feedback from performance analysis-offered within a course with a biomorphic focus. The project demands a design solution that operates on two levels, function and aesthetics; students focused on proposing an "elegant" building component without compromising structural efficiency. The results are discussed with regard to aesthetic theory, as indicators toward integrating analysis tools in creative processes and also understanding different learning paradigms for students. Furthermore, the students' perception of the process within two different rule-based systems is discussed. Finally, the evolution of this experiment within a clinical framework by collaborating with neuroscientists is contemplated, with the scope of collecting quantifiable data about aesthetics and establishing a connection with data-driven design processes.