Five tentacles over Sydney

Publisher
Jiří Vojtěšek
21.04.2009 00:30
Chris Bosse, Tobias Wallisser, and Alexander Rieck from the LAVA (Laboratory for Visionary Architecture) created a spatial installation titled Green Void for the main atrium of the customs building in Sydney, Australia. The object, designed specifically for this nearly twenty-meter-high space, fills all five floors and creates a strong visual contrast with the newly renovated office building.

Green Void is inspired by the relationship between humans and nature, derived from its fundamental principles, and translated into contemporary forms using modern technologies of fully digital design and production. Just 300 square meters of material, weighing no more than 40 kilograms, defines an internal space of 3000 cubic meters.

Five "tentacles" stretch across the space, connecting the individual floors of the atrium directly above the model of the city center.

Chris Bosse explains: "The shape of the installation is not explicitly designed; rather, it is the result of the most efficient connection of various points in three-dimensional space. It is a digital transcription of a principle commonly seen in nature, for example, in the branching of trees or coral structures. We simply defined the connection points within the space, and the rest is the result of a mathematical process defining the minimum surface area of the material." "The resulting forms were achieved using a flexible material that follows its structure in response to tension and gravity forces, similar to a spider’s web. We are interested in the geometries of nature that can embody efficiency (sustainability) and beauty."

"We were curious to see how far we could take the idea of enclosing maximum space with minimum material. The result is the wrapping of 3000 cubic meters with a minimal surface area of 300 square meters of material weighing 40 kg."

The project abandons the idea of applying structure in the traditional sense. The space is filled with a three-dimensional sculpture freely expanding between the walls, ceiling, and floor. The design and manufacturing process took place through a digital model, which was initially defined only in general terms; its final form was then defined through a series of simulations and calculations imitating the principles of evolutionary systems in nature. The resulting virtual model was further used in the production phase of the project, where special software for working with textiles and membrane structures transformed it into a real form. The result of the entire process is a product – a design product that demonstratively illustrates the advantages of a fully digital design and manufacturing process.

This process of optimizing the minimal surface area of the design and the overall manufacturing process using CNC technology reveals a new dimension of sustainable design in practice. This idea was primarily realized by Green Void in optimizing the amount of material, minimizing its weight, and achieving efficient production and installation in an extremely short time. Another advantage is the ease of relocating the installation to any place in the world where it can be quickly reassembled.


author: Laboratory for Visionary Architecture / LAVA: Chris Bosse, Tobias Wallisser, Alexander Rieck
material: refined high-tech nylon
dimensions: 21 x 8 x 12 m
structure area: 300 m²
structure volume: 3000 m³
weight: 40 kg
production and installation time: 5 weeks
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