Considering the Quake

Considering the Quake: Seismic Design on the Edge explores the elegant, and oftentimes elusive intersection between the aesthetics of architectural form and the technicality of structural design, through the lens of earthquake engineering. Curated by Professor Ghyslaine McClure, P.Eng and Dr. Effie Bouras, of the McGill University Department of Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics, this exhibition emerged from their research on the resiliency of emergency shelters and civil protection buildings, such as schools and hospitals, in earthquake zones throughout the world.

Envisioned as a "science center" for design, the exhibition, which is tailored not only for the architecture and engineering communities, but an invested public as well, will feature full-sized seismic technology utilized in buildings, architectural and structural models, seismic testing videos, including clips from Tomas Koolhaas’ new documentary titled REM, and a 500N shake table from North American Wave Spectrum Science and Trade Inc.

International in scope, projects include, the Office for Metropolitan Architecture’s (OMA) groundbreaking Taipei Performing Arts Center, CCTV and the Shenzhen Stock Exchange; Daniel Libeskind’s Contemporary Jewish Museum in San Francisco with OLMM Consulting Engineers; Singapore/Tokyo-based Studio SKLIM’s, earthquake-resistant Hansha Reflection house; work by California-based Tipping Mar Engineers and Degenkolb Engineering - the oldest seismic engineering firm in the USA; Star Seismic, an innovative seismic technology firm based in Utah that has pioneered the engineering and design of buckling restrained braces (BRBs) and Kinetica Dynamics.