by a fusion of ecological design and high-tech construction
In 2006, Edward McIntosh completed his design for a collection of bamboo structures for an eco-beach resort in Ecuador. Today, the architect takes his explorations of the sustainable material a step further and into the urban fabric and introduces himself bamboo as a high-tech building material. With the help of Occasionallythe AI generated The Bamboo Skyscrapers series explores a fusion of ecological design principles with contemporary building and modern urban contexts.
The series visualizes towers such as Leadenhall Building, Lloyds Building, HSBC-HK Building, Mahanakhon and more as modern and ecological hybrids. Overlaid with images of the originally built bamboo structure by the architect who skyscraper emerge from their skylines as fusions of modern industrial materials hybridized with sturdy bamboo frames.
Bamboo Digirid Structure | all images by Edward McIntosh
Edward McIntosh’s bamboo skyscrapers conquer urban skylines
Edward McIntosh’s first explorations of bamboo in the built environment began in 2004 when he began designing the Meson del Quijote Eco Resort on the beaches of Ayampe, Ecuador. The project gave shape to several bamboo buildings, including a five-storey structure constructed from bamboo poles bundled into sturdy columns and beams with peripheral diagonal bracing. Today, with his work at Atkins Middle East, the architect is investigating the use of text-to-image AI tools like Midjourney to improve the architectural workflow. Her practice has included implementing the programs as custom reference generators, supercharged Photoshop, and as brainstorming tools for team members to quickly share ideas in graphic formats.
With this in mind, McIntosh has revisited his early explorations of multi-story bamboo buildings, using Midjourney to create hybrids between bamboo structural systems and iconic urban high-rises. The purpose-built skyscrapers and megastructures were then merged with the 3D Cartesian bamboo structure that served as the base pattern input for the program.
a bamboo structural frame with plug-in program
Considering the impact of AI tools in the design industry, Edward McIntosh notes: “I believe text-to-image AI tools are currently focused on image generation and not so much on architectural design. Nonetheless, they are fairly powerful tools, allowing for quick and compelling testing of ideas and the ability to discover nuanced variations that might not have been obvious in a more traditional design process. Not only are we threatening the role of the human designer, but we’re using text-to-image AI tools to accelerate our design process and innovate new ways of thinking.
a bamboo structure inspired by the Lloyds Building
a bamboo structural frame with plug-in program
Bamboo mega structure that supports plug-in rooms
HSBC building redesigned as a bamboo skyscraper
Project info:
Surname: Bamboo skyscraper
Designers: Edward McIntosh
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edited by: ravail khan | design boom
