Artists provoke my thinking and understanding beyond the allowable limits of engineering codes. My own form-finding work has sculptural qualities but is deeply grounded in the laws of physics. The insights and innovations gained in my collaborations with artists are unexpected and invaluable.
Sigrid Adriaenssens’ research interests lie in the mechanics of large-span structural surfaces under construction and extreme loading. From storm surge membrane barriers to macroscale adaptive shading shell devices, she has innovated a range of structural and architectural systems. The framework she is developing combines advanced analytical formulations, numerical form-finding and optimization approaches, fluid-structure interaction, and machine learning models to accelerate discoveries and automate optimal designs.
In her cross-disciplinary work, Sigrid has initiated and nurtured collaborations with researchers from diverse fields, including computer and material science, biology, robotics, architecture, philosophy, art history, visual arts, graphic design, and choreography.
She is the co-editor of the International Journal of Space Structures, a fellow of the Structural Engineering Institute of the American Society of Civil Engineers, and vice-president of the International Association of Shell and Spatial Structures. A 2023 Myron Goldsmith Fellow at the Illinois Institute of Technology, Sigrid has also received the DigitalFUTURES Matthias Rippmann Award from Tongji University, Shanghai, and the Pioneers Award from the Spatial Structures Research Centre of the University of Surrey, England.
As a Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Princeton University, Sigrid directs the Form Finding Lab. She teaches courses on the (non)linear mechanics of solids and slender structures, structural design, and the integration of engineering and the arts.
