From 17,000 Pixels to 13 Comb Variations: A Façade Rationalised in Grasshopper

Wrapping around the curved corner of a Mumbai skyscraper, Yah Jagah Hai (This Is The Place) is a large-scale architectural artwork by Giles Miller Studio. Rising more than 42 metres, the textured façade forms a downward-pointing chevron visible from a distance, while angled elements produce shifting tonal effects in the light. Behind that visual complexity lies a remarkably economical computational strategy: a field initially conceived as approximately 17,000 square pixels was rationalised into just 13 variations of a repeatable component.

*The artwork in its Mumbai context: the textured façade rises more than 42 metres along the corner of the skyscraper, readable from a distance across the surrounding city.*

FROM SKETCHES TO A PARAMETRIC SYSTEM

The artwork began with initial sketches from Giles Miller Studio. Computational consultant Nataly Khadziakova, working through IM-A studio, translated these sketches into early Grasshopper definitions, exploring the design before the team incorporated all building and fabrication constraints. Rhino and Grasshopper remained the central tools throughout the project, from the first studies to the final fabrication documentation.

Rather than developing a finished geometric proposal and handing it over unchanged, the team worked iteratively. As fabrication requirements emerged, Nataly refined the Grasshopper definition in coordination with Giles Miller Studio and the fabricators. Resolving technical details and production constraints became part of the design process, with the aim of simplifying manufacture without compromising the character of the original artwork.

*Street-level view of the curved corner, where the chevron pattern wraps around the building, and the façade reads as an irregular field of independent squares.*

TURNING PIXELS INTO COMBS

The main rationalisation challenge was the number of elements. An initial composition of roughly 17,000 separate square pixels would have been cumbersome to organise individually for production. The team instead grouped the pixels into vertical sections called “combs.” Nataly created a separate Grasshopper script to explore different comb configurations, testing their geometry and their effect on the overall pattern.

*Early Grasshopper definition alongside the Rhino model, used by Nataly Khadziakova (IM-A studio) to translate Giles Miller Studio’s initial sketches into a parametric chevron study.*

The visual arrangement was based on an arrow-like pattern. Individual pixels were rotated to prescribed angles, and the comb variants were distributed across the façade to create the impression of an irregular field of independent squares. Working with Giles Miller Studio, Nataly tested alternative comb designs and arrangements until the overall effect was satisfactory. The final solution used only 13 comb variations, repeated across the installation.

COMPUTATIONAL DESIGN WITH GRASSHOPPER

This distinction between apparent complexity and actual component variety was central to the project. The façade could retain its changing visual rhythm without requiring thousands of different fabricated parts. Organising those variants and their positions demanded substantial work with Grasshopper data trees – particularly when the geometry had to be translated into information for individual panels.

*Rhino model showing comb variants highlighted across the façade, part of the separate Grasshopper script used to test comb configurations and their effect on the overall pattern.*

FROM MODEL TO FABRICATION

To coordinate production and installation, the team worked with a 2 × 2 metre panel grid. Façade One developed the system for fixing the combs to the façade, while Nataly organised their locations into panel-by-panel documentation. Grasshopper generated the fabrication drawings, which were then baked and exported as labelled 2D drawings for production. Separate comb drawings were provided for laser cutting, and colour coding made each component’s location easier to identify.

*Grasshopper data trees organising comb variants and their positions on the façade, the key step in translating the geometry into information for individual panels.*

Despite the scale of the work, the definition did not rely on third-party Grasshopper plugins. Nataly describes a compact setup in which the main Rhino inputs were the façade’s bottom curve and the pattern; much of the subsequent geometry generation and drawing preparation took place in Grasshopper. This kept the design, component distribution, and fabrication information connected within one computational workflow.

*Rendered study of the comb pattern: pixels rotated to prescribed angles create the impression of an irregular field, while only 13 comb variations are repeated across the installation.*

Completed in 2022, This Is The Place demonstrates how rationalisation can support, rather than dilute, an architectural artwork. The team preserved the appearance of a richly varied surface while limiting its physical component types and preparing the information needed to make and install it.

*Labelled 2D fabrication drawings generated in Grasshopper and organised by the 2 × 2 metre panel grid, with colour coding to identify each comb’s location for production and installation.*

For Nataly, a particularly satisfying result was how closely the installed façade matched the Rhino model developed during the process.

*Installed façade detail, closely matching the Rhino model developed during the design process—a result Nataly highlights as particularly satisfying.*

CREDITS

Project: Yah Jagah Hai (This Is The Place)
Location: Mumbai, India
Client: SD Corporation
Design: Giles Miller Studio
GMS Design Lead: Kirstie Little
Computational Consultant: IM-A studio – Nataly Khadziakova, Katya Bryskina
Fabrication / Installation: Façade One Photography: Edvinas Bruzas