Digital goes analog

Augmented Grounds in Quebec

SoomeenHahm Design

About

Augmented Grounds is a winning compe­ti­tion entry of the Inter­na­tional Garden Festival 2020. It is a land­scape design instal­la­tion, located in the Métis garden, Prince, Quebec, Canada, completed its cons­truc­tion in July 2020.

The design is inspired by tradi­tional Métis sash and the proposal uniquely combines tech­no­lo­gies in its making process which was highly evaluated by the compe­ti­tion juries.

While the expe­ri­ence of the instal­la­tion being highly analogue, the cons­truc­tion process of this topo­gra­phic terrain contri­butes to a new inno­va­tive prac­tice of garden design by intro­du­cing smart cons­truc­tion tech­no­logy using augmented reality.

As the geometry is gene­rated based on a mathe­ma­tical algo­rithm, the combi­na­tion of tradi­tional mate­ria­lity and mathe­ma­tical form surrounded by the beau­tiful forest of Reford Garden provides a unique expe­ri­ence for visi­tors to truly expe­ri­ence the product of colla­bo­ra­tion between human, computer & nature.

While the expe­ri­ence of the instal­la­tion being highly analogue, the cons­truc­tion process of this topo­gra­phic terrain contri­butes to a new inno­va­tive prac­tice of garden design by intro­du­cing smart cons­truc­tion tech­no­logy using augmented reality.

As the geometry is gene­rated based on a mathe­ma­tical algo­rithm, the combi­na­tion of tradi­tional mate­ria­lity and mathe­ma­tical form surrounded by the beau­tiful forest of Reford Garden provides a unique expe­ri­ence for visi­tors to truly expe­ri­ence the product of colla­bo­ra­tion between human, computer & nature.

Cloud

The project utilized Augmented Reality and cloud based digital twin commu­ni­ca­tion plat­forms in order to realize the cons­truc­tion during the pandemic. The project cele­brates the fast and intui­tive commu­ni­ca­tion between desi­gner and maker, utili­zing the digi­tally augmented human labours craf­ting the deli­cate mate­rial on site by wearing AR Lenses.

At the same time, a globally assem­bled team of desi­gners were able to review the cons­truc­tion process through a cloud based digital twin of the cons­truc­tion site, being able to intui­tively super­vise the cons­truc­tion process from far distance and pass on know­ledge and guidance to local crews effi­ci­ently. This enabled the global team of desi­gners and makers to be able to work toge­ther simul­ta­neously in distance during the design and cons­truc­tion process.

Craftmanship

The instal­la­tion also cele­brates human craft­sman­ship. We chose to use colourful rope inspired by the colours and history of the tradi­tional Métis sash, the Augmented Grounds garden takes visi­tors through a playful and colourful rope display of topo­graphy that reflects the pride of Métis culture and iden­tity.

In the garden, visi­tors can walk along the colourful contours of ropes, sit and lie down on the coiled seating, or run up and down on the mounds and the pools.

While the expe­ri­ence of the instal­la­tion being highly analogue, the cons­truc­tion process of this topo­gra­phic terrain contri­butes to a new inno­va­tive prac­tice of garden design by intro­du­cing smart cons­truc­tion tech­no­logy using augmented reality.

As the geometry is gene­rated based on a mathe­ma­tical algo­rithm, the combi­na­tion of tradi­tional mate­ria­lity and mathe­ma­tical form surrounded by the beau­tiful forest of Reford Garden provides a unique expe­ri­ence for visi­tors to truly expe­ri­ence the product of colla­bo­ra­tion between human, computer & nature.

While the expe­ri­ence of the instal­la­tion being highly analogue, the cons­truc­tion process of this topo­gra­phic terrain contri­butes to a new inno­va­tive prac­tice of garden design by intro­du­cing smart cons­truc­tion tech­no­logy using augmented reality.

As the geometry is gene­rated based on a mathe­ma­tical algo­rithm, the combi­na­tion of tradi­tional mate­ria­lity and mathe­ma­tical form surrounded by the beau­tiful forest of Reford Garden provides a unique expe­ri­ence for visi­tors to truly expe­ri­ence the product of colla­bo­ra­tion between human, computer & nature.

Métis

This garden is the Métis­sage of cultural pride and inno­va­tion. The Métis sash is tradi­tio­nally made with the art of finger weaving and draped across one’s shoulder or tied around the waist.

The Augmented Grounds garden repres­ents the Sash through colourful ropes made of twisted fibres that are tightly laid on top of the terrain to create a land­scape of contours that reflects the diffe­rent depths of Métis history repre­sented on the sash.

Analogue and algorithm

While the expe­ri­ence of the instal­la­tion being highly analogue, the cons­truc­tion process of this topo­gra­phic terrain contri­butes to a new inno­va­tive prac­tice of garden design by intro­du­cing smart cons­truc­tion tech­no­logy using augmented reality.

As the geometry is gene­rated based on a mathe­ma­tical algo­rithm, the combi­na­tion of tradi­tional mate­ria­lity and mathe­ma­tical form surrounded by the beau­tiful forest of Reford Garden provides a unique expe­ri­ence for visi­tors to truly expe­ri­ence the product of colla­bo­ra­tion between human, computer & nature.

While the expe­ri­ence of the instal­la­tion being highly analogue, the cons­truc­tion process of this topo­gra­phic terrain contri­butes to a new inno­va­tive prac­tice of garden design by intro­du­cing smart cons­truc­tion tech­no­logy using augmented reality.

As the geometry is gene­rated based on a mathe­ma­tical algo­rithm, the combi­na­tion of tradi­tional mate­ria­lity and mathe­ma­tical form surrounded by the beau­tiful forest of Reford Garden provides a unique expe­ri­ence for visi­tors to truly expe­ri­ence the product of colla­bo­ra­tion between human, computer & nature.

We did this.

Project data

Design

Soomeen Hahm (Soomeen­Hahm Design Ltd)
Yumi Lee (Seoul National Univer­sity)
JaeHeon Jung (KOH SX Studio Inc.)

Project team

Hanjun Kim, Marie-Eve Brais, Justine Valois, Marion Sellier, Fran­çois Leblanc

Physical address

Opening

2020

Photograph

JC Lemay
Martin Bond  
Marie Eve Brais

Video

Hanjun Kim, Marie Eve Brais

Author

Johannes Bühl­be­cker
More Sports Media

More Photos

Construction site

Design

Video

AUGMENTED GROUNDS from Soomeen­Hahm Design Ltd. on Vimeo.

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