Structural applications such as the Harvard grid shell are emerging as new applications for tiles, challenging age-old perceptions of ceramic as surface finish. Ceramic Tectonics asks the question; can a product typically experienced as a two-dimensional surface also define and enclose a three-dimensional space?

Fabricated from unreinforced 6mm thick ceramic tile, the catenary form of this triangular, self-supporting grid shell is designed to minimize internal stresses and efficiently span between three points of support. The structure’s 30 ceramic ribs form a novel structural pattern of triangles and hexagons, and are a world-wide first system of this kind constructed from ceramics. The notched connections between structural ribs accommodate for a novel assembly sequence that eliminates the need for mechanical connections between intersecting ribs, and allows each rib to be installed vertically from above. 

The project team developed a computational approach to generate the geometry of the pavilion, discretize the form into individual components, accommodate for assembly tolerances, and generate the toolpath geometry for each component. This digital workflow enabled the project team to quickly adjust assembly tolerances and component dimensions during the design and prototyping phase. 

With a maximum interior height of 2.48m, and a span of 6m between supports, the structure includes approximately 13.5sqm of occupiable interior space. It consists of 462 unique elements ranging from 82 - 181cm in length. The structural depth of each element ranges from 20 – 31cm and is determined by its location within the structure. The ceramic elements measure 107.22sqm in total area. In total, the structure weighs approximately 1,662 kg. 

Project Manager: Zach Seibold

Design Research: Yonghwan Kim, Olga Mesa, Milena Stavric

Coordinator: ITC - Javier Mira 

More info and images https://cevisamadossier.tileofspain.com/