The journey began about a year ago, when I set out to launch the AAVSLA and reached out to Patrick Shearn of Poetic Kinetics, who enthusiastically supported the idea of a workshop where he would share his knowledge of the music festival world and design skills. I wanted to capitalise on LA’s attributes as the world’s entertainment capital, and a unique venue to launch and showcase innovative projects in music festivals, media, entertainment and architecture.

California is home to cutting edge festivals with lasting impact on design, art and technology. New entertainment concepts and productions that captivate the world’s attention for hours a day in every possible media format are conceived and brought to life in L.A. The city is also fertile ground to a wide variety of architectural designs and styles. through the concerts themselves and the experiences of eating, drinking, and sometimes sleeping in the same bass-pumping arena for days, a new culture of active entertainment is born.Some of the biggest names in architecture are represented in the city’s urban landscape: Charles and Ray Eames, Richard Meier, Frank Lloyd Wright, Frank Ghery, Morphosis, Roto Architects... to name just a few.

This is the fertile ground that informed the AAVSLA. The workshop was predicated on a brief that asked students to imagine, design and create a kinetic structure for a music festival of their choosing. Musical festivals are becoming very important for artists and fans alike who increasingly value shared experiences and emotions; through the concerts themselves and the experiences of eating, drinking, and sometimes sleeping in the same bass-pumping arena for days, a new culture of active entertainment is born. Festival goers don’t want to be just passive observers when they live in the festival. Everything has to be interactive! This is the reason why the world around them must enliven their senses. Their eyes, ears, fingers, and even mouths are a part of the experience. The music and concerts tend to take care of the aural and sometimes visual experience, but it is up to the art and other installations at the festivals to keep the party going when the band leaves the stage.

Under Poetic Kinetics guidance and expertise in the music festival industry, along with AA tutors Devin Gharakhanian of SuperArchitects and myself, students would be presented with typical variables of the festival world: client needs, atmospheric and budget constraints, replicating the iterative, fast pace environment at which architecture and entertainment work together to create unique experiences. Students would work on their own design and digital They would learn the importance of problem-solving and how that goes hand-in-hand with innovation to achieve the desired and inspired result.models and modify them according to client desires and venue logistics. They would learn the importance of problem-solving and how that goes hand-in-hand with innovation to achieve the desired and inspired result. 

Weeks before the start of the workshop, we began looking for a site in the city to showcase the work product of the AAVSLA. Just two days before start date, Poetic Kinetics secured the Pershing Square site thanks to the generous support of Now Art L.A. and the kindness of the City of L.A. We were also given a date by which we had to lift Liquid Shard. It had to be on the 28th at night, so life at the square would not be disrupted. We had to adapt the students' brief to the new circumstances of site and timing. From that moment, the AAVSLA project became real and we only had eight days to execute it for public display.

The AAVSLA workshop took place at Poetic Kinetics’ studio in The Brewery with a dozen students from all over the world. It was divided into two stages,—design and construction—compressed within a very tight timeframe. During the first days, the students familiarized themselves with the site, the physical and regulatory constraints of the square and the materials to be used in the installation. Students made their concept models to test different designs and ideas. By day five, we held a jury to select the project the students would build at the workshop’s studio, with the participation of external jurors including Carmen Zella of Now Art L.A. and Kevin Regan of the City of L.A.’s Recreation and Parks Department. In the end, the design solution selected by the jury reflected a combination of several student proposals, notably including the addition of a second layer of material which gave Liquid Shard its unique movement when flying in the wind.We only had two days after that to assemble and one night to install.

We only had two days after that to assemble and one night to install. Two busy, long days started at Elysian Park for all the students. The mylar material was unrolled, cut, stitched and cut again to get into the right shape and position. Students had to endure an L.A. heat wave while they worked frantically to have everything ready for installation day.

Anchor points were decided using the purple tower overlooking the square and the palm trees. Amsteel rope, bungee cords and bouncing length were all measured by the students in computer models and on site, taken to the last detail to guarantee accuracy. We had only one night to lift the installation in Pershing Square and no time for mistakes.

It is never the same. That’s what makes it so special.The installation was complete after a very long day and night but its impact was not yet fully visible. The next morning when we all went back we could see how the Liquid Shard completely transformed Pershing Square with its changing position, shining colours, smooth flow and quiet presence. It has created a new destination in the middle of busy downtown, where you can now enjoy an oasis of calm. People want to see it, stand under it and touch it. The kinetic movement makes it different every time you look. Through the Liquid Shard’s social media presence on Instagram and Facebook we have seen how it is a different experience to everyone. It is never the same. That’s what makes it so special. 

Students and tutors alike were thrilled about the AAVSLA experience and amazed at the viral take-off in the coverage that followed. Karla Marukoglu, an AAVSLA student from L.A., said: “From different parts of the world we came, we collaborated, we imagined, we designed, we built, and we made magic in Pershing Square. Truly an experience that I will never forget.”

Sarah Abouelkhair, another student from Egypt said: “The first time we visited the square, it was deserted. In the middle of the crowded city of downtown L.A. and it was empty. I cannot describe the feeling I got when we went back to the square after putting up the installation to find it flowing with life, I felt like I partook in something special!”