Serra Gate Mimarlar bir süredir yeni üretim yöntemlerinin icadı sayesinde mümkün kılınabilecek formları araştırma konusunda çalışmaktadır. Giderek ucuzlayan 3D yazıcılar sayesinde artık neredeyse her tasarımcı bu araçların mimarlık dünyasına sunabileceği şekilleri araştırmak üzere deney yapabilir hale gelmiştir. Bu cihazlar yalnızca üretimin limitlerini genişletip süreci hem kısaltıp hem de daha çok ürün çıkaracak hale getirmekle kalmamış, ayrıca uzun süredir üzerinde tartışılan dijital tasarım yöntemlerinin nasıl somut ürünler haline gelebileceğini göstererek tasarımın ağırlıklı olarak dijital yöntemlerle yapılmasının nihayetinde "kağıt mimarlığı”na yol açacağı eleştirisine, bu tasarımların da ayakta durabileceğini kanıtlamıştır. fabricated by GAD as a part of on-going research on flexible structures. The design was based on a modular system in steel for a free-standing urban gate that can be moved and transformed based on programmatic requirements. For Serra Gate, the only functional constraint was that it would be an urban pacemaker, a landmark attracting attention to a specific point in the city. After its initial opening at a temporary event at the Esma Sultan Mansion, also designed by GAD in Ortaköy, Istanbul, the Serra Gate place maker would move to a more visible public location in Taksim Square in the center of Istanbul as a part of Istanbul Design Week in 2015.
The design of Serra Gate is based on the desire to create homogeneous space generated by a complex structure in steel plates. The initial computational design model was based on geometry from the 3d arrangement of ceramic tiles but this strategy was quickly transformed into a more complex design derived from geometry based on the mathematics of minimal surfaces.
The transformation’s primary goal was to achieve flexibility through a series of formal pairing rules that resulted in a surface that delineates and explores space and location. This structure of vertical tiles between horizontal plates was realized through a digital design that included surface tension and structural analysis. The resulting complex steel geometry is realized without any column-like elements rising out into space to generate different views across the vast volume of Taksim Square from reflections of the intriguing minimal surface. 
GAD’s exploration of tectonics through an architecture that is mutational and transformable in this design was one of the first pioneering efforts in digital design and fabrication to appear in Istanbul. The Serra Gate was later moved to another site on the Golden Horn as part of its journey through Istanbul’s urban context as an active agent of proactive design.
The Serra Gate outdoor installation was designed and fabricated by GAD as a part of on-going research on flexible structures. The design was based on a modular system in steel for a free-standing urban gate that can be moved and transformed based on programmatic requirements. For Serra Gate, the only functional constraint was that it would be an urban placemaker, a landmark attracting attention to a specific point in the city. After its initial opening at a temporary event at the Esma Sultan Mansion also designed by GAD in Ortaköy, Istanbul, the Serra Gate placemaker would move to a more visible public location in Taksim Square in the center of Istanbul as a part of Istanbul Design Week in 2015.
The design of Serra Gate is based on the desire to create homogeneous space
generated by a complex structure in steel plates. The initial computational design model was based on geometry from the 3d arrangement of ceramic tiles but this strategy was quickly transformed into a more complex design derived from geometry based on the mathematics of minimal surfaces. The transformation’s primary goal was to achieve flexibility through a series of formal pairing rules that resulted in a surface that delineates and explores space and location. This structure of vertical tiles between horizontal plates was realized through a digital design that included surface tension and structural analysis. The resulting complex steel geometry is realized without any column-like elements rising out into space to generate different views across the vast volume of Taksim Square from reflections off of the intriguing minimal surface. GAD’s exploration of tectonics through an architecture that is mutational and transformable in this design was one of the first pioneering efforts in digital design and fabrication to appear in Istanbul. The Serra Gate has later moved to another site on the Golden Horn as part of its journey through Istanbul urbanism as an active agent of proactive design.