Using AI as a Design Tool in My Architecture Practice
TLDRThis transcript discusses the integration of AI into the architectural design process, emphasizing the iterative nature of creation. The speaker shares their experience using 'mid-journey' as a tool for generating ideas and exploring abstract concepts, such as sculpting landscapes or using specific materials. They detail a methodical approach to prompt AI with modifiers to achieve desired architectural forms and styles, highlighting the importance of blending and remixing AI outputs to guide the creative process. The result is a versatile tool that expands the range of design possibilities, offering new opportunities for architects to innovate and refine their work.
Takeaways
- 🏛 Architecture is a long process that starts with an idea and a sketch, not a singular act of the architect.
- 🔍 The speaker experiments with AI as a tool in the architectural design process, finding it to be an addictive and creative experience.
- 🎨 AI can generate a variety of building designs by blending and remixing images, similar to the development of old Polaroid photos.
- 🤖 The AI tool, referred to as 'mid-journey,' is used to create building types by averaging and slicing data from images.
- 📝 The speaker emphasizes the importance of starting the AI prompt with a modifier to influence the final result more effectively.
- 🏡 AI-generated images can be used to solve specific design problems, like creating a sauna, by feeding in related data and iterating on the results.
- 🌟 Using 'elemental forms' and 'odd historic building terms' in AI prompts can lead to more interesting and unique architectural designs.
- 🛠 Adding material references in the AI prompt helps to steer the final images towards the desired outcome.
- 🖼️ The speaker uses character modifiers like specific photographers or artists to influence the style of the AI-generated images.
- 🔄 The process of blending and remixing AI images is key to discovering unexpected design elements and pushing the design forward.
- 🏞️ The final result of the AI design process can be used as a starting point for further exploration and refinement in the architectural design.
Q & A
What is the common misconception about architecture creation mentioned in the transcript?
-The common misconception is that architecture is created as a singular act by the architect, where a grand vision falls out of them onto the page, rather than being a long process starting with an idea and a sketch.
What is the role of AI in the speaker's architectural practice?
-AI, specifically a tool called 'mid-journey,' is used as a design tool to experiment and generate various architectural concepts, aiding in the exploration of abstract ideas and solving design problems.
How does the speaker describe the experience of using 'mid-journey'?
-The experience is described as addicting, a mix between gambling and watching old Polaroids develop, where one can spend time generating multiple building designs.
What is the significance of starting the AI prompt with an important modifier?
-Starting the prompt with an important modifier is significant because words closer to the front of the prompt have more influence on the final result, guiding the AI to generate more relevant designs.
Why does the speaker prefer to think in terms of elemental forms rather than specific building types?
-Thinking in terms of elemental forms allows for more creativity and specificity, which in turn leads to more interesting and unique architectural results.
What is the purpose of adding material references in the AI prompt?
-Adding material references helps to steer the final images towards a desired aesthetic, making the AI-generated designs more aligned with the user's vision.
How does the speaker use character modifiers in the AI design process?
-Character modifiers such as specific magazine styles or references to photographers and artists can be used to influence the style and mood of the AI-generated images.
What is the aspect ratio preset used by the speaker and why?
-The speaker uses an aspect ratio of 16x9, which is a wide format image, to get different results compared to a vertical aspect ratio, and it helps in achieving a specific visual composition.
What is the final step in the speaker's AI design process after generating base images?
-The final step is blending, which combines two to four images to create something unexpected, and then using those blended images to guide the AI in selecting certain traits in each iteration.
How does the speaker incorporate the AI-generated images into their design work?
-The speaker uses the AI-generated images as a starting point for further design exploration, pushing the design forward by examining elements like the stone base and wood shroud, and considering their functional and aesthetic implications.
What is the speaker's view on the role of AI in the architectural design process?
-The speaker views AI as another tool in the design process, not as a replacement for human creativity but as a way to explore more options and uncover new opportunities in architectural design.
Outlines
🏗️ Architectural Design Process and Experimentation
The speaker discusses the common misconception that architecture is a singular act of the architect with a grand vision. Instead, it's a lengthy process starting with an idea and sketch, followed by testing and experimentation. They introduce 'mid-journey' as a new tool for architectural design, comparing it to gambling and the development of old Polaroid photos. The speaker emphasizes the importance of abstract thinking and using mid-journey to sculpt landscapes and manipulate materials. They describe a method for using mid-journey effectively, starting with a prompt that includes modifiers, subject, material references, and environmental details. The speaker also explains the blending process, which combines multiple images to create unexpected results, and how these can be used to guide the design process further.
🌳 Exploring Design Options with Mid-Journey
This paragraph delves into the speaker's use of mid-journey to explore various architectural options. They describe how mid-journey allows for the examination of many more design possibilities than before, with the flexibility to iterate without preciousness or finality. The speaker uses the tool to experiment with exterior wood screens and the parallax effect, which changes the building's appearance based on the viewer's perspective. They mention the simplicity of the exterior volume contrasting with the complex relationship between the interior and exterior. The speaker concludes by emphasizing that mid-journey is another tool in the design process, helping to discover new opportunities and ideas that were not previously considered.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Architecture
💡Mid-journey
💡AI as a Design Tool
💡Sketch
💡Experimentation
💡Averaging of Data
💡Elemental Forms
💡Blending
💡Remixing
💡Style Modifier
💡Aspect Ratio
Highlights
Architecture is often misconceived as a singular act by the architect, but it's a long process starting with an idea and a sketch.
The speaker has been experimenting with AI as a design tool in their architectural practice.
Mid-journey, an AI tool, is described as being addictive, combining elements of gambling and the development of Polaroids.
AI can generate buildings by averaging data, such as creating familiar sauna designs from input images.
The speaker emphasizes the importance of starting with a strong idea when using AI in design.
A method for using AI involves starting with an important modifier to influence the final result.
Elemental forms and specific historic building terms can lead to more interesting AI-generated results.
Adding material references helps to steer the final images towards the desired outcome.
Highly specific details and setting references can give more control over the AI's output.
Character modifiers, such as referencing styles of architects or artists, can influence the AI's creative direction.
The aspect ratio and style modifier are crucial in determining the format and creativity level of the AI's output.
The process involves remixing and reprompting until a satisfactory set of base images is achieved.
Blending multiple images can uncover unexpected design elements.
AI-generated images can serve as a starting point for further design development.
Anomalies in AI images can inspire new design directions, such as a light screen element in a live/work project.
The speaker considers the possibility of a movable element that changes the structure's aspect in the landscape.
The use of exterior wood screens can create a parallax effect, altering the building's appearance based on the viewer's perspective.
AI is positioned as another tool in the design process, allowing exploration of more options than previously possible.
The design process with AI involves guiding it to select for certain traits in each iteration.
The speaker finds that using AI exposes new opportunities in architectural design that were not previously considered.