Anthropologists identify the act of creation and innovation as one of the defining characteristics of human development. Throughout the stone-age, 5 major transitions in stone tool making technology were defined and referred to as “modes”. In the past 2.5 million years humanity has continued to advance new tools at an ever accelerating rate from the abacus, to the slide rule, calculator, and computer.
Although these innovations are typically made to address specific problems, each new tool correspondingly opens doors to numerous unforeseen opportunities. This program explored the significance of tool-making in contemporary architecture both as a resolution to existing complications as well as a platform for design innovation.
