In the attempt to further our studio design we headed to the shop today to try and bang out some different ideas. With the model that was built over the weekend we started to form new ideas of what the structure could be. This model proved to be a great tool that we could use to shape new forms and physically see a three dimensional object rather than just a sketch.
Yesterday at the end of studio Sam called a local bamboo farm and headed over to his place to see what he had to offer. She said that the “farm” was his backyard and it was incredible to see the amount of bamboo he had. He let her take a few stalks back so that she could share it with the studio. We experimented with different styles of joining the stalks of bamboo and also tested the strength that the largest stalk had. I grabbed some scrap boards outside the shop and placed the stalk across them then proceeded to step up on it to see if it would break. To my amazement a two inch in diameter stalk easily held up my 200 plus pound body with only a little deflection.
After these first couple of experiment with bamboo we decided that this should be the material that we use for the structural members of our project. It is strong and flexible as well as aesthetically pleasing. We are still just scratching the surface of this material but I believe today was definitely a step in the right direction.