Once I had completed the Grasshopper definition, I took the cut patterns that it generated and laser cut the model pieces. The base and the 'bamboo' were cut from 3mm MDF, and the formwork which it was supporting was cut from 2mm mountboard.
The bamboo pieces in the laser cutter
One of the first things to do was to get all of the individual bamboo pieces organised – there are 385 of them, so finding the right ones to slot into each specific slot on the base would be tricky if they were in one randomly arranged pile!
The bamboo pieces organised into groups of ten and ordered from 1 to 385
Then, I glued together the base, and then spray painted it white. I built the base up so that there were holes on the second-to-bottom layer, as well as the top layer, so that the bamboos would have a secure connection and would sit completely vertically. It also meant that I eliminated the need for gluing these, as they slotted snugly in place.
With the base fully assembled, it was then time to start slotting the bamboos in place. This understandably took a fair bit of time, but the numbering system worked successfully, and I used a print out of the base with the numbers on to cross off the ones that I have placed. This was because I decided against etching the numbers of the holes onto the base, so that the final model would be more aesthetically pleasing.
Base and printout of the base numbers, to cross off as bamboos were put into place
Now that bamboo forest is completed in the base, it is time to assemble the formwork pieces, and hope that this area of construction is as successful, and slots correctly over the bamboo.
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