Homeostasis: A Hybrid Facade System

Homeostasis: A Hybrid Facade system

Work by FengQian Xing (M.Arch ’25) for “Fit for the Future 3.0,” a Research Studio taught by Julia Koerner. The studio explores how performative, 3D-printed skins, drawing on parallels between fashion and architecture, can retrofit existing buildings to meet extreme climatic conditions through additive construction.

Project Statement:

The building facade, generally viewed as a static boundary, possesses considerable unexploited potential as a dynamic intermediary between a structure’s internal environment and exterior conditions. This research introduces the application of homeostasis—the biological notion of maintaining dynamic internal stability—as a fundamental concept to reimagine the facade as an intelligent, self-regulating system. This homeostatic method significantly transforms its function from a passive enclosure to an active environmental manager and spatial integrator.

This study establishes a framework for responsive facade systems by systematic analysis of four essential dimensions: identity, adaptiveness, structure, and experience. These systems aim to concurrently fulfill two objectives: the active optimization of core building performance (energy efficiency, air quality, and lighting) through dynamic responses to external variability and the fundamental transformation of user experience by establishing fluid, adaptable thresholds that reconfigure spatial perception, circulation, and occupant interaction, effectively merging interior and exterior environments. This homeostatic facade paradigm ultimately promotes a mutual improvement of functional efficiency and human-centered experiential objectives.

Integrating these dimensions—identity, adaptiveness, structure, and experience—leads to the conceptualization of a futuristic facade system that is self-supporting, adaptive, and responsive to environmental dynamics. This system would seamlessly interact with the building’s structure and interior spaces while maintaining a degree of universality. Through iterative design and prototyping, the system could be tailored to diverse architectural typologies, accommodating various geographic and environmental conditions. Such a facade system represents a holistic solution for the challenges of contemporary and future architecture. The facade significantly influences occupant experience and redefines interior spatial dynamics beyond its physical attributes. A carefully crafted facade surpasses its function as a simple boundary, serving as an active intermediary that eliminates conventional distinctions between interior and outside. By dynamically regulating natural light, framing captivating vistas, and adjusting air circulation, it radically transforms the quality and perception of indoor environments, thereby affecting occupant pleasure, productivity, and well-being.

Facades including operable components—such as windows, vents, or adjustable shading systems—enable users to control their surroundings, improving comfort and cultivating a significant, physical link with the external environment beyond the glass. Considerate daylighting techniques enhance natural light infiltration, diminishing dependence on artificial illumination, increasing energy efficiency, and promoting healthy circadian cycles. Importantly, these versatile solutions can alter the building envelope, facilitating the extension of interior activities outdoors, disrupting fixed spatial configurations, and rethinking circulation patterns that conventionally terminate at the wall. Facades utilizing modern materials may concurrently provide acoustic comfort in demanding conditions, demonstrating that performance and experience enhancement are not mutually contradictory.

User-centered design is essential for facade innovation. By emphasizing occupant requirements and preferences, facades transform from static barriers into dynamic interfaces that effectively merge inner and outdoor spaces. This method fosters environments that are both highly functional and resource-efficient, while also being aesthetically pleasing and engaging, transcending traditional compartmentalized spaces and promoting a harmonious, fluid relationship between users and their surroundings.

Fit for the Future 3.0

3rd year M.Arch Research Studio instructed by Julia Koerner

This year-long research studio, now in its third cycle, investigates the relationship between fashion and building skins, exploring how future buildings can adopt performative, 3D-printed envelopes made from innovative sustainable materials. As climate change drives extreme heat, fires, droughts, and flash floods, the studio rethinks retrofits and additive construction by designing “wearable” skins that actively respond to these conditions, ensuring occupant comfort and building resilience.