#FOTM - unSTRUCTURED

by Shawn Lee & Ng Wei Liang

Studio Yuan Chao

Y2S2 Design Studio 2021

Painting in the unforgiving forest

Utilising the forest as his muse, our painter seeks solace beyond the concrete jungle into the peaceful forest, painting the forest rainscape. Inspired by the naturalistic forms he surrounds himself with, he turns to biomimicry to provide a simple shelter.

unSTRUCTURED explores the adaptability of form, providing a lightweight yet waterproof envelope, shaping to its environment and providing comfort for the painter in the rain. Beyond physical responses, the envelope cocoons the painter, providing a hideout from the beautiful yet hostile forest ecosystem.

Biomimetic Design Inspiration

To understand the forest, we looked at several native animals and insects found in Coney Island and derived at the Common Tailorbird. It has a unique construction of its nest; using spider silk or fibers to weave leaves together, using its beak as a needle. This provided us with our design considerations of Comfort, Portability and the overall Form.

Design & Making Process

unSTRUCTURED - A Short Film

We used our design and portrayed the process in a short film, rather than a documentative video. It presents a young professional who paints in his free time. With the opening of Coney Island, he finds the process of painting difficult with the rain. Thus, seeking inspirations from the forest of Coney Island, he observes the Common Tailorbird and 'weaves' this portable shelter together with common sustainable products. The shelter floats elegantly, morphing to the shape of the nearby trees and providing climatic solace in the beautiful yet unforgiving forest.

Special thanks to Shawn Lee & Ng Wei Liang