Concrete Choreography

From ancient civilizations to the modern era, columns have embodied harmony, balance, and proportion, often regarded as works of art within architecture. What could a contemporary reinterpretation of a column order, enabled by emerging digital technologies, look like?

In collaboration with the Origen Festival in Riom, Switzerland, the Concrete Choreography installation features nine unique, 2.7-metre-tall columns. Each column was 3D-printed in concrete at full height within just 2.5 hours using a fabrication process developed at ETH Zurich, supported by NCCR DFAB. This method demonstrates the potential of computational design and digital fabrication to redefine concrete construction.

This process eliminates the need for traditional formwork, allowing for the creation of bespoke designs with complex geometries in a fully automated manner. The hollow concrete structures strategically place material only where necessary, significantly reducing waste and enabling a more sustainable approach to architecture.

Designed and fabricated by students of the MAS ETH in Architecture and Digital Fabrication, the columns explore the unique possibilities of layered extrusion printing. As part of the Origen Festival’s 2019 summer season, they served as dynamic architectural elements, framing and enhancing dance performances. The project exemplifies how advancements in digital fabrication can deliver efficient and expressive solutions, paving the way for the future of concrete architecture.