presentation at eCAADe 2007, 26-28 sep 2007, Frankfurt am Main, Germany Shape grammar transformations have been used for developing new design styles by the systematic modification of grammars that encode existing styles. We make use of a style description scheme to aid grammar transformations for goal driven style change. A rule base was authored for the design of Greek temple facades, and was augmented with a style description scheme. These were tested at a student workshop wherein students were asked to develop grammars based on given style briefs. Results gained from the workshop confirmed that most students were able to assemble and transform grammars successfully. The method was found to be useful for teaching style and grammars to students and novice designers.

1. Transforming grammars
for goal driven style innovation
Testing a methodology
Sumbul Ahmad
Scott Chase
eCAADe 2007
Department of Architecture

2. Wright Prairie & Usonian houses
De Stijl paintings
Knight: Style synthesis via grammar transformation

3. Yingzao fashi grammar
Li: Imparting style knowledge

4. Rules Designs
Fleming: Teaching design synthesis

5. Use of semantic differential to quantify style attributes
associated with grammar components
Primitives Style Characteristics
Spatial Relations Style Characteristics
Rules
Grammar Style Description Scheme
Ahmad & Chase: Style Description Scheme

6.  Developing style descriptors, and associating
them with grammar components
 Quantifying these on a scale of -5 to 5
Grammar Component Adjectival pair
Shape
Boundary A1 Rectilinear Curvilinear
A2 Basic Derivative
Corners A3 Angular Rounded
Spatial Relationship
Organisation B1 Axial Non-axial
B2 Symmetrical Asymmetrical
B3 Monolithic Fragmentary
B4 Directional Stable
Shape group
Arrangement C1 Rectlinear Curvilinear
C2 Symmetrical Assymetrical
C3 Monolithic Fragmentary
C4 Directional Stable
Mobile Phone Grammar

7. 10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
0%
Curvilinear
Rectilinear
A1
Derivative
A2
Basic
Shapes
Angular
Rounded
A3
Axial
B1
Range
Symmetrical
B2
Monolithic Fragmentary
B3
Spatial Relations
Measures to describe style
Directional
Static
B4
Rectilinear Curvilinear
C1
Symmetrical Asymmetrical
C2
Fragmentary
Monolithic
C3
Shape Groups
Directional Static
C4
Inclination
Average

8. • Aims
– Introduce students to grammars and concepts of
style briefs/transformations
– Test the methodology of transformation
• Tasks
– Researcher
• Develop rule base and style descriptors
– Students
• Assemble a design grammar based on a given
style brief
• Transform the grammar based on an altered
style brief
Student workshop

9. Development of the temple rule base

10. • Handouts
– Rule base
– Activity sheet & Derivation sheet
– Feedback form
• Tasks
Original brief
1. Assemble grammar from rule set, based on brief
2. Generate designs
New brief
3. Transform original grammar according to new brief
4. Generate designs from the new grammar
5. Feedback
Workshop operation

11. Style briefs

12. Original style brief
• Composition: ‘Symmetric’, ‘Monolithic’, ‘Stable’
• Design element specification: ‘Rectilinear’,
‘Symmetric’, ‘Simple’ or ‘detailed’ or both.
• Column spacing: ‘Symmetry’ ‘Density’ ‘Regularity’
Be-01 Bu-01 Co-01 Fe
Jo-01 Mi-01 Se-01
Original grammars: Designs

13. Altered style brief 1
• Composition: ‘Asymmetric’ or ‘symmetric’ or both;
‘Monolithic’ or ‘fragmentary’ or both; ‘Stable’ or
‘directional’ or both.
• Design element specification: ‘Rectilinear’,
‘Symmetric’, ‘Simple’ or ‘detailed’ or both.
• Column spacing: ‘Asymmetric’ ‘Sparse’ ‘Irregular’
Be-01 Cou-01 Co-01
Fe-01 Jo Po
Transformed grammars: Designs 1

14. Altered style brief 2
• Composition: ‘Symmetric’, ‘Monolithic’, ‘Stable’
• Design element specification: ‘Rectilinear or
Curvilinear or both’, ‘Symmetric or Asymmetric or
both’, ‘Simple’ or ‘detailed’ or both.
• Column spacing: ‘Symmetry’ ‘Density’ ‘Regularity’
Bu-01 Se-01 Sm-01
Transformed grammars: Designs 2

15. Grammars developed from style briefs

16. • Style descriptors useful for assembling grammars
• Designs generally conformed to the style briefs
• Style descriptors like a rough guide
• Useful for setting standards for ambiguous concepts
• Some discomfort with limits imposed on range of
designs
• Others liked the set of parameters with which to work
• Feedback supports idea that style descriptors could be
used for goal driven style change
Student feedback

17. • Students with no grammars experience were able to
assemble and transform grammars and generate
designs according to given style briefs
• Rule sets allow students to understand and use rules
quickly
• Style briefs were broad & generic in nature, allowing
individual interpretations
• Transformed designs showed significant stylistic
change in some cases
Summary