"Tangle Jungle": An experimental project to combine collaboration and craftsmanship in digital design pedagogy

Tangle Jungle was an experiment in an alternative method of design and making for the digital age. The aim of the project was tointerpret and reenact traditional craftmanship through today's digitaltools. For a particular study on the subject, we looked at the theory and works of William Morris. Morris had an exceptional taste for medieval art and produced, among other things, hand-woven carpets that are still studied today. Morris reinvented the art of his time by reviving pre-industrial modes of production and designs. Today, the digital age is experiencing a similar paradigm shift. Digital tools already work, in many instances, as a direct extension of the hands of a new breed of digital artisan makers. It is possible to assess that the digital is getting closer to Morris's notion of craftsmanship. Tangle Jungle became a testing ground for this historical connection, bringing forth the question, can we redefine our own digital craftsmanship as a form of digitally reenacted Gothic revival? © 2014, The Association for Computer-Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia (CAADRIA), Hong Kong.