Info: form(data) (shown above) was created by custom software the simulated the patterns on fish and coral. I wrote an algorithm to simulate the growth of the pattern (reaction-diffusion) on a square simulation grid with toroidal boundaries. After exporting the simulation data a surface was milled out on a 5-Axis CNC Mill then finished by hand.

Meta: form(data) is an art piece and a critical design project. This project and the others done during my residency at Autodesk hopes to inspire and invoke questions about the future of form making and design. Specifically, how can we grow form, and use data to inform our design decisions. How can we use computation to help us make design decisions? How do we design algorithms and parametric systems to help us create objects? What kind of interfaces do these objects have? How can we streamline or scale the process of making form? How will localized digital fabrication and the lower cost of digital fabrication tools affect design and what objects are designed? I believe the future of design will drastically change over the next 10 years as 3D printing and other fabrication methods become ubiquitous.

Process: After the form was generated / grown by simulation, it was taken into Autodesk Inventor HSM. Inventor was used to generate tool paths for CNC milling. Then sheets of MDF were laminated together with wood glue to create a 1ft by 1ft by 5 inch stock. Then a 5-Axis CNC was used to mill out the form. Then piece was primed, sanded and painted. For more details on the process, please check out the instructable. 

Designer & Developer: Reza Ali
Fabricator: Reza Ali
Output: Sculpture & Custom Software (C++, openFrameworks)
Residency: Autodesk Pier 9
Year: 2014