A Shelter With Some New Angles

As part of their ID coursework, ID student David Kropp created this geodesic structure, and ID students John Zerning and Donald Davidson built it, in 1956. Its multi-panel, low-poly roofing is made of triangles of insulated lightweight materials, hinged together, for quick construction. The structure could be assembled and lifted with a crane into position in about 40 minutes, and also moved from building to building in production-line style. The structure photographed here is a prime example of Doblin's emphasis on planning and construction, along with the influences of Buckminster Fuller and Konrad Wachsmann, ID teachers. Fuller was a renowned futurist and inventor of the geodesic dome, and Wachsmann an architect known for his work with mass-produced building components.