CDG's Colin Harris in NYC show

Colin Harris, P.E. recently returned from New York City where he participated in the installation of Feel It, Take It, a project he designed with The Functionality.

Feel It, Take It was composed of 140 unique recycled felt scarves nested together and transformed into a dense wool chandelier. Each scarf was digitally designed so it could be cut using a computer numerical controlled (CNC) machine. At the closing of the installation, each scarf was removed from the chandelier and given to a gallery attendee. By the end of the evening, the installation metamorphosed into individual elements of personal fashion, leaving little trace of waste at the conclusion of the project's life in the gallery.

From installations to infrastructure, Colin enjoys enjoys the opportunity to work on multidisciplinary design projects that incorporate elements of design, fabrication and construction. According to Colin, "engineers, planners and architects do not typically have the opportunity to realize our projects in the form of hands-on construction. Interactive design and construction processes allow us maximize the potential of our future designs."

Putting that statement into practice, Colin used the three-dimensional digital model at the gallery space to better correlate the actual site constraints to the assumptions made during the design phase. The model was tweaked during the installation process so that required construction inputs could be generated in real-time, allowing for a drastic increase in overall assembly efficiency.

The Functionality is a multidisciplinary design collective that explores issues of technology, culture and economics through considered research and tactile experimentation.