They have a FLARE for kinetic movement...

Some of you might know my obsession for the pneumatically actuated installation known as Hyposurface. I can't figure out if it's the flow or limitless functional possibilities that intrigues me more, but I'm fascinated by every color, click and wave.



Recently, a robot junkie peep of mine in San Fransisco pointed me to the water sculptures of William Pye and, for whatever reason, I was reminded more so of the mechanical movement in Hyposurface than the organic, hypnotic movement of Pye's water sculptures.

Call it an obsession with simulated movement, but for whatever reason, I'm more impressed with technological mimicry than its natural brethren. So I decided to go back to the Hyposurface concept and see if there was anything new on the market.

Needless to say, I'm in love with a new piece of technology. Take one part wall curtain, two parts stealth bomber, multiply by peyote and you've got:

FLARE: Kinetic Ambiant Reflection Membrane

FLARE turns the building facade into a penetrable kinetic membrane, breaking with all conventions of the building surface as a static skin. The FLARE system consists of a number of tiltable metal flake bodies supplemented by individually controllable pneumatic cylinders.


Due to the developed pattern, an infinite array of flakes can be mounted on any building or wall surface in a modular system of multiplied FLARE units.

Each metal flake reflects the bright sky or sunlight when in vertical standby position. When the flake is tilted downwards by a computer controlled pneumatic piston, its face is shaded from the sky light and this way appears as a dark pixel.

By reflecting ambient or direct sunlight, the individual flakes of the FLARE system act like pixels formed by natural light. The system is controlled by a computer to form any kind of surface animation. Sensor systems inside and outside the building communicate the buildings activity directly to the FLARE system which acts as the buildings lateral line.

Read more about FLARE Facade HERE.

Bury me a building with a tree on top...

Wow, what a nice reflection from the windows...

But wait, what's this view? From the inside, that's a...huh!?!?? Is that a window-curtained loading ramp leading to (shudder) yet another friggin' environmentally friendly parking garage?*

Or is it another crazy ski jump from Julien De Smedt, although I doubt that's the case given the unfortunate launch directly into the window. With De Smedt's concepts, however, you never know...

A walkable, livable, enjoyable green roof? Why, I think it is?!?!

I. Want.

OK, this building is old hat to most in the blogosphere, but I couldn't resist a repost.

About two months ago, the first shots of the School of Art, Design & Media, in Nanyang, Singapore came out and were, well, were grainy and pretty blah. Now, however, you can really soak it in...

Designed by CPG Consultants Pte Ltd, the award-winning design is five stories tall and is made entirely of raw, unpainted concrete, cement-sand screeded (screeded is right, yes?) floors, natural timber railings and raw glass.

It begs the question: is it a building with landscape or a landscape with a building?

Light goes in, heat waves stay out. Simple. The internal water feature in the sunken courtyard also provides additional cooling, and affords the possibility of grey water reclamation. It's funny though, all I can think of doing is giving a grandiose speech on one of the palmed islands in the middle while throngs of people lined the upper railings. It would make a CRAZY amphitheater!

Via HERE:

Located at the junction of Nanyang Ave and Nanyang Drive, the new iconic School of Art, Design and Media is situated in a wooded valley right in the heart of the campus.

The design was conceived as 3 intertwining blocks that are apparent natural extensions of the ground. These blocks interweave to enclose a picturesque plaza and landscape. Major spaces such as the Auditorium, Media Studios, library and art galleries surround this outdoor activity node.

Tucked indoors are complementary facilities such as Stop Motion Studio, 3-D Hi-End Computer Graphics Studio, Soundstage, Sound Recording Studios, Audio Visual Editing Suites, Hi-End Digital Post Studio etc.

The highlight of the building is the verdant turfed roof which blends with the ground contour. Apart from its visual impact, the turfed roofscape is a functional space which is easily accessible via sidesteps along the roof edge, thereby allowing the rooftop to be a scenic outdoor communal space. Environmentally, it helps to lower the roof temperature and surrounding areas.

The facade design is a glass curtain wall in neutral grey colour. The remaining parts of the building comprised off-form concrete walls which eschew painting or external rendering works.

The external finish is reserved in its primary condition to maintain its design integrity and naturalness. When night beckons, the building lights up like a beacon that announces its warm presence. The interior lighting streams through the glass curtain walls to render the building a dynamic stage against the backdrop of the external landscape.

*For those of you that don't know this yet, NO parking garage, regardless of LEED points, is environmentally friendly. Urbanize properly and through away the keys!