Architecture students present bamboo installation

Nuno Soares and Frederick Cabio

Architecture students of the University of Saint Joseph recently launched an exhibition titled “X-STAX” at Creative Macau, a bamboo installation that forms the centerpiece of an exhibition at the faculty’s 2018 bamboo pavilion.

The exhibition showcases a series of pieces that express the movements of expansion and contraction from ceiling to floor by a tied and rotating piece of bamboo.

According to third-year architecture student, Frederick Cabio, these types of exhibitions serve as vital experience for them to be able to apply the theories they learn in the classroom.

“It’s a good experience to be part of […] because we get the general idea of what construction would be and how to deal with related small and big problems,” Cabio told the Times.

According to the description of the exhibition, the pavilion is intended as a link between Macau’s historical building culture and contemporary cityscape by applying advanced digital design techniques to vernacular construction materials.

“In the future, we need to do actual development that works. Instead of wonderful theories, we have to make sure that these theories work perfectly in real life,” the architecture student added.

Meanwhile, according to Nuno Soares, acting-coordinator of USJ’s Department of Architecture, this is the first time that the year three students are showcasing their work to the public – work that took a semester for the students to complete.

Soares noted that the faculty also focuses on teaching students about interacting with the public.

“This is very important in their training as an architect. Interacting with the community will part of their everyday life so they need to be able to evaluate the consequences of their work,” the professor added.

USJ students’ work was also presented at this year’s Venice Architecture Biennale held from May 26 to 28. The Department of Architecture showcased “Urban Catalyst – Shaping the Future of Medini City,” a project undertaken by USJ’s urban design studio led by Soares.

Also, the architecture department is presenting the installation “X-PEAX Bamboo Pavilion” at the university, as part of USJ’s “Faculty of Creative industries Graduation Show.”

The collective exhibition, which ends on June 30, groups the three departments of FCI into three different exhibitions, including a photo and video exhibition; product and graphic design exhibition; and the bamboo installation. LV