What is the 'bottom-up' design approach, and why is it better than a traditional workflow?

In a traditional (top-down) workflow, you design a shape first and struggle to figure out how to build it later. A bottom-up approach means the design emerges directly from material behavior and manufacturing limits.

I am comfortable with Rhino, but I have very little experience with Grasshopper. Will I fall behind?

Not at all. While basic familiarity with Rhino is recommended, prior Grasshopper experience is helpful but not essential .

The focus is on pavilions, but can I apply these design-to-fabrication skills to larger architectural projects?

Absolutely. We use pavilions because they offer the perfect amount of complexity—addressing form, materiality, and assembly—to complete within a two-day timeframe. However, the parametric logic, geometric organization, and part-to-whole relationships you learn can be directly scaled up and applied to complex facades, large canopies, and intricate interior interventions.

How detailed does the 'fabrication-ready' geometry get? Will we cover how the pieces actually fit together?

Yes. The curriculum moves far beyond just making a beautiful 3D surface. Day 2 is deeply focused on the realities of making. You will learn how to organize your geometry for production, analyze buildability, and develop the specific assembly logic required to turn your digital model into physical, manufacturable components.

Why does the course use ComfyUI and Flux AI for rendering instead of traditional software like V-Ray or Lumion?

Generative AI is transforming how we present architecture. ComfyUI is a free, node-based interface that feels very natural if you are already using Grasshopper. By integrating Flux AI models, you will learn a cutting-edge workflow to rapidly translate your complex parametric geometry into stunning, highly atmospheric architectural visualizations

Parametric Pavilion Design: From Concept to Fabrication

Name: Parametric Pavilion Design: From Concept to Fabrication
Price: 85.00 USD
Availability: InStock

Igor Pantic

Verified Account

1 course5.0

About Parametric Pavilion Design: From Concept to Fabrication

This workshop provides insight into practical design-to-fabrication workflows in Rhino and Grasshopper for the development of small-scale architectural structures. The course is grounded in a bottom-up design approach, in which design emerges from the material system, fabrication methods, and their inherent limitations, rather than treating fabrication as something to be addressed after the design is complete.

During the sessions, we will move from initial design concepts to fabrication-ready outputs and architectural visualisations. Rhino and Grasshopper will be used in parallel for 3D modelling, parametric and algorithmic design, and the preparation of geometry for fabrication and assembly.

The course will conclude with a session on AI-assisted rendering using ComfyUI (a free, open-source, node-based interface for generative AI) and Flux AI models.

This workshop provides insight into practical design-to-fabrication workflows in Rhino and Grasshopper for the development of small-scale architectural structures. The course is grounded in a bottom-up design approach, in which design emerges from the material system, fabrication methods, and their inherent limitations, rather than treating fabrication as something to be addressed after the design is complete. During the sessions, we will move from initial design concepts to fabrication-ready...

What you will learn

Understand bottom-up design where form emerges from materials and fabrication constraints
Develop small-scale structures using design-to-fabrication workflows in Rhino and Grasshopper
Explore form generation and structural organisation through pavilion studies
Use Rhino for 3D modelling and Grasshopper for parametric design
Prepare geometry for fabrication and assembly
Create rendered architectural images using ComfyUI and Flux AI models

Methodology

This workshop will be centred on pavilion-scale structures, as they offer enough complexity to address form, materiality, fabrication, and assembly within a manageable two-day format. Although the main examples are pavilions, the same methods can also be applied to canopies, installations, lightweight enclosures, and interior interventions.

A series of studies will be used to demonstrate different approaches to developing a project through material systems and methods of making.

Rather than following one fixed design path, these examples will show how the process can shift in response to material behaviour, production constraints, assembly logic, and the type of system being developed.

This workshop will also address different ways of organising geometry, components, and part-to-whole relationships as the design evolves.

By the end of the workshop, each participant will develop an individual pavilion-scale proposal, taking it from an initial design concept to a complete, fabrication-aware design supported by rendered images.

The course will be taught as a step-by-step demonstration of a complete workflow. Participants will follow the development of a project from an initial design idea, through the definition of its overall geometry and design direction, to parametric control, technical refinement, and visual output.

Sessions will combine live demonstrations, structured walkthroughs, and individual project development. The material will be taught as one continuous process, moving from early design studies and geometric development to fabrication preparation and rendering.

Participants will first follow the demonstrated examples and workflows, then apply the methods introduced during the course to develop their own proposal.

Program:

Day 1

Introductory lecture on the workshop framework, bottom-up design approach, and overall workflow
Pavilion-scale case studies demonstrating different design methods
Walkthrough and demonstration of Rhino and Grasshopper workflows
Discussion on how material systems and fabrication methods inform form and design direction

Day 2

Fabrication-oriented development of the demonstrated workflows
Preparation of geometry for fabrication and assembly
Discussion of part organisation, buildability, and assembly logic
AI-assisted rendering using ComfyUI and Flux AI models
Final visual output

This workshop will be centred on pavilion-scale structures, as they offer enough complexity to address form, materiality, fabrication, and assembly within a manageable two-day format. Although the main examples are pavilions, the same methods can also be applied to canopies, installations, lightweight enclosures, and interior interventions. A series of studies will be used to demonstrate different approaches to developing a project through material systems and methods of making. Rather than...

Knowledge Requirements

What you should already know or have ready before you start, experience, tools, and any baseline skills the instructors expect. Scan the list below so nothing catches you off guard.

Basic familiarity with Rhino is recommended.
Previous experience with Grasshopper is helpful, but not essential.
ComfyUI installation guidance will be provided before the workshop.
Instructions for downloading Flux models and placing them in the correct ComfyUI folders will also be provided in advance.

Course Content

10 Lessons

Screenshots

Software & tools

Highlights

Instructors

Igor Pantic

1 Course5.0

Igor Pantic is an architectural designer and educator based in London and Bangkok, andthe founder of Studio Igor Pantic Ltd. He works at the intersection of computational design,digital fabrication, immersive MR/VR, and generative AI, exploring how these fieldsinfluence the design and perception of built and virtual environments. He specialises indigital and automation technologies, including robotic fabrication, advanced materials, andthe application of Mixed Reality in architectural processes.Igor was a Senior Lecturer in Architecture at The Bartlett School of Architecture, UCL,where he taught for nine years in the B-Pro Architectural Design (AD) programme and ledresearch into Mixed Reality-assisted design and fabrication. He has lectured and taughtinternationally, including at the University of East London (MArch Unit 6), the AA VisitingSchool in Vienna (co-director), and in visiting academic positions at RMIT in Melbourne,INDA (Chulalongkorn University), and King Mongkut’s University of Technology Thonburi(KMUTT) in Bangkok, Thailand.His notable projects include the award-winning Steampunk Pavilion for the 2019 TallinnArchitecture Biennale, which demonstrated the pioneering use of Mixed Reality inconstruction, and the Serbian Pavilion at the 2025 Venice Architecture Biennale. Beforefounding his studio in 2018, Igor spent seven years with Zaha Hadid Architects in London,contributing to numerous high-profile projects. He holds master’s degrees from theArchitectural Association Design Research Lab (AADRL) in London and the Faculty ofArchitecture, University of Belgrade, Serbia.

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