Unit A

Unit A is a research-led BSc Architecture Design Studio at the University of East London, lead by Carsten Jungfer and Fernanda Palmieri. We work with live-project situations and connect design learning with research through knowledge exchange between students and external partner organisations. Unit A focuses on social-spatial conditions within contested urban contexts and understands architectural design both as a spatial and strategic response to specific socio-spatial contexts.

23/10/2014

Fri 24 Oct Casting workshop visit in Leyton

We visited a specialist casting workshop in Leyton, that is run by fabricator and maker Roey Hunt. We participated to the full process by starting to make a plywood mould (negative space), mixing up  plaster and pouring it into the mould. After the plaster was set, we finished by demoulding to reveal a warm, solid plaster object.

Prior to the casting workshop visit, I had many pre-conceived notions concerning techniques of casting and was to some extent a self-proclaimed expert. I was assured I would enter the workshop as a casual observer, but I was wrong! Practically everything I had previously held to be true was mistaken, from the method of mixing plaster, to the setting time (hint: it’s not 40 minutes!). Moreover, the idea that the mould itself could become as important as what you’re trying to cast, and the process of making it was interesting, and this changed the way I now look at the process of casting and model making in general.

Text by Silas Koopmans (year 3)