Tensile History

Tensile History

Although Tensile Architecture is a fancy modern name for it, this is probably the oldest and simplest method human beings have devised to provide shelter.
The oldest tents known come from Siberia, Lapland, Iceland and Alaska. To shield themselves from icy winds, nomadic hunters hung animal skins over large bones. If trees were available, branches were used as supports. Since these materials are completely biodegradable, it's impossible to say just how human beings have been making tents. The evidence found thus far dates back at least 40,000 years. Thirty thousand years later, woven fabric was first incorporated into the tent.
Tensile structures are one of the most promising trends in contemporary architecture. Once again, this era started in Germany in the 1950's, when Frei Otto began building cotton fabric canopies using tent technology. Otto realized that structural and architectural forms are inseparable. He argued that flexibility is a strength, not a weakness. He proved that large tensile fabric buildings were possible, even though the materials and construction methods necessary were not yet available.