Digital Steam Bending

In the mid-nineteenth century, at the same time that Great Lakes craftsmen utilized abundant regional lumber to construct bent-wood snowshoes and canoes, Michael Thonet was manufacturing his iconic Café Chair No. 14. Steam-bent construction was lightweight, rigid, and compact, making it ideal for mass production. But unlike many industrial processes, steam bending used local and renewable materials, lent itself to easy disassembly / repurposing of material, and required no toxic adhesives.

While steam bending remains a viable craft-based practice its chapter in the history of early industrial production was relatively short-lived, having been quickly replaced with tubular steel and other more predictable, more thoroughly modern materials. Practicing in the post-industrial meltdown of the American Midwest, we began our research by probing this virtually forgotten technique.  This return provided a frame within which to speculate about new modes of digital fabrication at an architectural scale.

 credits

02_Spring Back_Thonet Twist

03_Spring Back_ Steiner Screen Shot

04_Spring Back_3D Print

05_Spring Back_ Thonet Jig

proj3_aerial-photo.ai

07_Spring Back_Split

08_Spring Back_Water Jet Detail

09_Spring Back_Water Jet

10_Spring Back_Cart

11_Spring Back_Variable Bending Jig

12_Spring Back_Failure Pile

13_Spring Back_Reflection

14_Spring Back_Exploded Axon

15_Spring Back_Trellis Close Up2

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