watch computers design houses with an interactive layout algorithm at venice biennale

visitors to the spanish pavilion at this year’s venice architecture biennale will be able to take part in an interactive exhibit that uses an algorithm to automatically generate residential floor plans. devised by architect john porral, the project is called ‘the bedroom script’ and it questions how far computers should go in architectural design. people are invited to draw their desired rooms, which the computer furnishes and joins into apartments and buildings.

users interact with the exhibit by drawing their rooms

images courtesy of john porral

the bedroom script exhibit was born from the viewpoint that housing is becoming more of a commercial asset than a home. ‘housing is an increasingly complex, technical, legal, political and economic entity. it connects us with the rest of society, even though it is a private place. it is both home and investment, refuge and electoral campaign. it is where we take a shower and a measuring stick for the economy,’  says porral. 

an example of a building produced by the algorithm, through the combination of user-drawn rooms

‘in order to guarantee our comfort, regulations define standards of size, density, transmittance… but on the other hand, we are subject to the whims of luck over the volume of the neighbor’s television or any potential leaks,’  continues the architect. ‘simultaneously, the fact that the quality measuring of a home is based on real estate and legal aspects produces an incentive for the minimum habitability criteria to become standard. in this way, the complexity of residential design is regarded from a commercial point of view.’

the exhibit questions how far computers should go in architectural design

as a solution to this complex housing problem, porral shows what it would be like if computers and automation completely took over the design process. he suggests encoding specific design criteria into architecture tools like CAD and BIM, allowing the computer to generate a customized house that meets the needs of both the inhabitants and the community as a whole. the proposal aims to prioritize habitability values over commercial ones and generate housing that regains its nature as a home, over its character as an asset.

the bedroom script is on view inside the spanish pavilion at the 2021 venice architecture biennale

project info:

name: the bedroom script: an algorithm for the automatic generation of apartments 

location: spanish pavilion, giardini, venice

event: 17th international architecture exhibition – la biennale di venezia

dates: may 22 – november 21, 2021

design: john porral

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom