Archinect - News

Never Alone: Video Games and Other Interactive Design finally gives MoMA the chance to showcase its growing video game collection

2022-11-04T11:54:00-04:00

MoMA’s acquisition of games is the responsibility of the Architecture and Design Department, which is focused on objects that are celebrated for their function. Paul Galloway, who has served as the point person for the museum’s video game acquisition efforts, says these multimedia objects are a natural fit for the most omnivorous section of the museum.

The show is open now and runs until July of next year in MoMA's first-floor gallery. Galloway and his co-organizers Paola Antonelli, Anna Burckhardt, and Amanda Forment say their department collects along four central criteria — esthetics, space, time, and behavior — though curatorial efforts to acquire "museum-ready" media are sometimes limited by intellectual property restraints concerning the game maker's original source code.

"It’s a show about interaction design, and video games are some of the purest, clearest examples of interaction design," Antonelli said in a preview. "Games are such complex acquisitions because when you acquire video games, you don’t just go ahead and buy them, you acquire a relationship because you want to make sure that… 50 years from now, curators will still be able to show these games without being bogged by intellec...

Check out this new map of Canadian Architecture award winners since 1968

2021-08-26T14:59:00-04:00

Looking for some Maple-flavored architectural inspiration? You’re in luck now, thanks to a new interactive map published by The Atlas of Research on Exemplarity in Architecture and the Built Environment in collaboration with Canadian Architect magazine.

The new map showcases a comprehensive list of the more than 500 winners of the magazine’s annual award since 1968. Featuring both built and unrealized projects, the list was compiled thanks to data collected by M.Arch students at the Université de Montréal.

The project was funded in part by the Canada Research Chair in Architecture, Competitions and Mediations of Excellence Social Sciences as well as the Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC). The full database can be accessed here.

NBBJ has acquired ESI Design, an innovative experience design studio

2020-02-06T14:09:00-05:00

International architecture and design firm NBBJ announced today that it has acquired experience design studio ESI Design. In joining one another, NBBJ and ESI Design will be able to capitalize on their multidisciplinary team to introduce digital experiences earlier in the design process, giving clients a more streamlined service offering.

"By integrating the design of architecture and dynamic digital experiences, we will create boundless opportunities to energize the places we live, work, and play to stimulate our senses and inspire discovery, learning, and impact," said Steve McConnell, FAIA, Managing Partner of NBBJ in a statement. "The acquisition of ESI Design brings this vision to life and increases NBBJ’s ability to serve our clients as they activate their brands, create community, inspire wellbeing, and thrive."

Founder and Principal Designer at ESI Design Edwin Schlossberg also said: "We are at an exciting moment in time where the diverse skillsets of digital designers, med...

This office lobby in Boston immerses visitors in a motion-activated virtual aquarium

2020-02-03T11:13:00-05:00

The lobby of an Art Deco office building in Boston has been transformed into an immersice digital experience that reacts to users' movements. Unreal Engine, the gaming engine behind Fortnite, Playstation, and many other gaming products, powers the ESI Design-created interactive mural and uses sensors to converse with building goers.

Lobby. © LasSalle Investment Management

The array of experiences shift throughout the day, from an aquarium with groups of active fish to exterior landscapes. The digital installation also features silhouettes of people walking and waving to building users, further activating the space.

Exterior. © LasSalle Investment Management

The digital mural is 84 feet long and 7 feet high, contains a total of 590 square feet of LED displays, and both the interior and exterior portions of the display can engage with users in the lobby and pedestrians outside of it.

SOFTlab designs a mesmerizing public installation that pays homage to a classic lighthouse in Alexandria, Virginia

2019-01-24T20:10:00-05:00

Located along the Potomac River in the city of Alexandria, Virginia an open circled public installation will draw visitors into its immersive and interactive display. Michael Szivos, the founder of SOFTlab design studio, took inspiration from local lighthouses to create a 25ft in diameter and 8ft high public installation. The New York-based design studio uses color and light to create Mirror Mirror. According to Szivos "Mirror Mirror will act as a beacon, beckoning visitors to venture into the new King Street Park at the Waterfront, interact with the artwork and explore and enjoy the new public plaza and civic space."

Mirror Mirror, Image © SOFTlab

Mirror Mirror will be the first commissioned art piece for Alexandria's Site/See: New Views in Old Town initiative. The annual series is set to display temporary installations that promote visitor attraction and foster public interaction within Alexandria's rich waterfront views. Through the use of light reflection and refraction, Mirror M...

Looking back at SOFTlab's interactive “Iris” inside the Mirror Chapel in Prague

2018-11-06T13:33:00-05:00

Located within the intricate interiors of the Mirror Chapel in Prague, “Iris” is an interactive installation that New York-based design studio SOFTlab created for the city's 2018 Signal Festival, which took place last month.

Designed to blend the elements of light and sound, the circular installation has mirrors that rotate in response to movement and LED lights that respond to ambient sound.

Photo courtesy of Signal Festival.

“As the mirrors rotate, they open the perimeter allowing not only direct views of the Mirror Chapel, but also creating a ‘Mise en abyme’, mixing the surrounding chapel, viewers, and light in a vertically fragmented, recursive, and panoramic image,” SOFTlab describes.

Photo courtesy of Signal Festival.

The mirrors reflect both the Mirror Chapel's embellished surroundings while infinitely reflecting the viewer inside the installation's circular space. But when the viewer moves closer to the mirrors out of curiosity, they suddenly ...

Sou Fujimoto to design immersive "Forest of Light" for Salone del Mobile 2016

2016-03-24T15:08:00-04:00

'I envisage to make a forest of light. A forest which consists of countless light cones made from spotlights above. These lights pulsate and constantly undergo transience of state and flow.' “People meander through this forest, as if lured by the charm of the light. Light and people interact with one another, its existence defining the transition of the other.”

In another collaboration with top-notch designers, fashion label COS has teamed up with Sou Fujimoto to create a nature-inspired installation for Milan's Salone del Mobile 2016 next month. For COS' fifth year of taking part in the design fair, Fujimoto is creating a "Forest of Light" that will exhibit the brand's collection in what could be a mesmerizing combination of light and sound.

"Forest of Light" draws inspiration from the experience of walking through a forest at twilight, which Fujimoto relates to his growing up in Hokkaido, where he was surrounded by nature. Set inside the now-derelict Cinema Arti theater, the installation will comprise of a darkened space illuminated by numerous towering cones of light produced from spotlights shining from above.

As visitors go about the space, the cones of light will pulsate and respond to their movements. Mirrored walls will create a seemingly infinite landscape of "abstracted trees, joining together to form a shifting forest of light." F...

Create sonic architecture with mesh, music, and lights at the New Museum this weekend

2015-08-06T14:50:00-04:00

Museum displays are typically meant to be seen and not touched, but a recent wave of exhibitions is upending those rules. Take DELQA, an interactive music and light installation opening in the New Museum's NEW INC space on August 6. Showcasing the music of Matthew Dear combined with Microsoft's Kinect technology, the project allows participants to touch, push and poke suspended mesh walls to manipulate a musical composition, creating their own unique experience of the space.

If you're on the hunt for weekend plans in NYC, DELQA will be at the New Museum only from August 6-9!

Thinc Design's USA Pavilion exhibition presents America's role in the future of food for Milan Expo 2015

2015-02-23T21:02:00-05:00

New York-based Thinc Design revealed their exhibition design for the USA Pavilion in the upcoming Milan Expo 2015 this May. Collaborating with Friends of the USA Pavilion, Thinc Design's exhibition highlights America's role in the future of the global food system, as a response to the Expo's overall theme, "Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life."

The food-related topic challenges the Expo's 140 participating countries to showcase their technological solutions on how to provide healthy, safe, and sufficient food for all, but through sustainable methods that won't disrupt the Earth's equilibrium.

Above: Biber Architects' architectural design for the USA Pavilion. © Biber Architects

Thinc Design's exhibition will be located inside a 26,000 sq.ft space of the USA Pavilion, designed by Biber Architects. Through a series of immersive presentations and with multilingual college-aged student "ambassadors" as guides, the exhibition will include interactive features and digital media that aim to p...

Building a collaborative jig-saw pavilion at the Media and Architecture Biennale in Aarhus

2014-12-09T20:51:00-05:00

"Programming Natural Affect" was one of the collaborative workshops during the Media and Architecture Bienniale 2014 last month in Aarhus, Denmark. Organized by Anna Ulak and Philipp Rahlenbeck of openconstructs, the workshop focused on fusing the organic properties of nature and the built urban environment through new media and architecture.

Participants learned about combining analog and digital production methods as they worked with each other and the organizers in building a small prefabricated pavilion. At the end of the workshop, the pavilion was displayed in the Main Exhibition during the Bienniale.

Ulak shared further project details below:

"Rather than trying to fully control/manage the relationship between the natural and built environment with computation (and its metaphors), this proposal sets out to augment the natural world. Thus creating artificial environments that evokes the organic. An architecture that artificially amplifies the experiences of nature that is diminish...

The House of Mirrors reinvents the Australian beach hut with a hint of mirror magic

2014-11-11T17:02:00-05:00

At first glimpse, the House of Mirrors looks like a misplaced stack of wiry boxes randomly cast away along the Australian coast. Up close, the cubical structure further engages passersby as its steel frame draws them right to its mirrory middle, which appears to float inside as it reflects its coastal surroundings.

The House of Mirrors by London and Melbourne-based design studio NEON was recently displayed at the Sculpture by the Sea Bondi 2014, a large public outdoor exhibition that takes place along the Bondi to Tamarama shoreline in Australia.

For more details, head over to Bustler.

The boolean-created “Situation Room” at the Storefront for Art + Architecture

2014-10-15T19:44:00-04:00

Immersed in a neon bubblegum pink shell, walking through the Situation Room gives viewers a fascinating perspective of the digital and physical environments. Designed by MARC FORNES / THEVERYMANY in collaboration with sound artist Jana Winderen, the installation was created by 20 spheres of various sizes fused by boolean operations. Storefront for Art and Architecture NYC commissioned the project for the WorldWide Storefront initiative launch.

Here's a sneak peek of the installation:

Have a seat at the "Urban Reef" installation in downtown Vancouver, Canada

2014-08-12T18:52:00-04:00

Meandering down a section of Robson Street on the iconic 800 block in downtown Vancouver, passers-by can sit, relax, play, and socialize on the "Urban Reef" installation. Designed by Kaz Bremner and Jeremiah Deutscher with local furniture collective Higher Works, Urban Reef won the inaugural VIVA Vancouver: Robson Redux design-build competition out of 78 submissions worldwide.

The competition had entrants create a temporary urban installation to transform the block to a welcoming public plaza from Canada Day (July 1) until Labor Day (September 1).

More details on Bustler.

Check out a timelapse video and the making-of teaser below.

Delve into The BIG Maze at the National Building Museum in Washington D.C.

2014-07-10T20:26:00-04:00

A life-size maze like the one BIG installed in partnership with the National Building Museum will attract plenty of attention, regardless if people know who BIG is or not. Constructed in the museum's iconic Great Hall, the maze was set up as an interactive sneakpeek for BIG's exhibition scheduled to open at the museum in January 2015.

As a follow-up to our previous mention of the maze, here's a little more detail behind it:

Check out a time-lapse video of the maze's construction below.

Finding playground potential in the Energy Carousel in Dordrecht

2014-03-31T15:08:00-04:00

For a kid, a lifesize light-up spinning top that you can play in right in your neighborhood sounds like a dream come true -- and such is the case in Dordrecht, The Netherlands.

The Energy Carousel by Madrid-based firm Ecosistema Urbano is a play structure that is both engaging and educational. As kids grab onto one of the structure's hanging ropes, the kinetic energy released by their movements is stored in a battery, which later serves as supply to light up the structure at night. The carousel's LED lights shine in various colors depending on how much energy was stored during that day.

The Energy Carousel was one of the winning designs in a 2010 invited competition by Carve, an Amsterdam design group that specializes in developing and engineering public spaces for children. Carve asked 10 European firms to design a multi-age sustainable "unconventional play object" to complete the Governeursplein public square in Dordrecht.

Since then, it seems the Energy Carousel has provided whirls ...

Bright nights at TED2014 Vancouver with Chrome-powered aerial sculpture

2014-03-19T17:47:00-04:00

Donning a spectrum of colors and moving beams of light, the "Unnumbered Sparks" installation comes to life every night as it hovers near the site of the 30th anniversary TED2014 world conference in downtown Vancouver, Canada.

Artist Janet Echelman and director of the Google Data Art Group Aaron Koblin -- who both spoke at TED2011 -- collaborated in designing the aerial sculpture just in time for TED2014. Echelman officially introduced the work earlier this week at the conference.

The 745-foot net, which is powered by Google Chrome and other modern web technologies, can be choreographed by visitors using their smartphones or tablets to "paint" the sculpture in real time.

Visitors in the area will be able to interact with Unnumbered Sparks every night until Saturday, March 22.

Check out the video below to see the creative process behind the piece.

Getting up close and personal with the Times Square Heart Design winning sculpture

2014-02-14T15:55:00-05:00

To show you all some Valentine's Day love, we have more photos to share of Young Projects' recently unveiled "Match Maker" sculpture from the 2014 Times Square Heart Design competition. Currently on display at New York's Times Square until March 11, 2014, the interactive heart-shaped sculpture pairs up individuals based on their zodiac sign compatibility.

From left to right: Bryan Young of Young Projects; Sherry Dobbin, Director of Public Art for the Times Square Alliance; and David van der Leer, Executive Director of Van Alen Institute

Find more photos on Bustler.

Winning sculpture of 2014 Times Square Heart Design unveiled

2014-02-10T17:39:00-05:00

How about we start the week with a heart-warming project right on time for Valentine's Day! "Match Maker," the winning sculpture of the 2014 Times Square Valentine Heart Design competition, was unveiled in New York's Times Square today. Designed by Brooklyn-based Young Projects in collaboration with Kammetal, "Match Maker" is an interactive heart-shaped sculpture that matches individuals based on their zodiac sign.

Have a glimpse of the winning and finalist installations:

Winner: Young Projects - Match Maker

Haiko Cornelissen Architecten - TWEET HEART NY

Pernilla Ohrstedt Studio - O Heart

Schaum/Shieh Architects - My Fuzzy Valentine

SOFTlab - Sweet Heart

The Living - Vapor Valentine

Learn more about each project at Bustler.

"Build with Chrome" brings the LEGO-building pastime to the digital realm

2014-01-31T13:12:00-05:00

LEGO and Google Chrome linked up to create "Build with Chrome", a social online building website that lets users build anything anywhere with an infinite number of Lego blocks -- virtual Lego blocks.

First developed as an experiment by a LEGO-loving team in Australia, Build with Chrome was based on the idea of bringing the classic plastic toy bricks to the digital realm. The website uses 3D graphic technology called WebGL that lets the virtual Lego bricks work like the real ones.

Once you're on the website, you can pick your plot anywhere or explore the "world of Build", which has a Google Maps interface. You can also start building your own project right away and publish or share it with friends.

If you already have a Google+ account, the Build Academy lets you master your LEGO building skills online through tutorials guided by characters from the upcoming LEGO film and completing tasks. The tasks grow more elaborate as you learn more tricks.

Even if it's not the same experience, virt...

What if a stage could transform and morph to complement the music and dancers around it?

2013-11-11T12:27:00-05:00

The Principals, a Greenpoint-based design studio, set off to explore that intersection of interactive design and technology with an art installation for MoMA PS1's summer Warm Up series. Hit the jump to see how the Spatium Yamamoto installation grooved to the beat for an unforgettable, psychedelic experience this past summer.

The Principals presented their latest interactive installation closing out MoMA PS1's Summer Warm Up series.

Interview: The Principals (Part I.)

2013-06-21T20:35:00-04:00

Can we start by exploring your process of developing an initial idea for a project? You all have very different backgrounds, specialising in metalwork, industrial design and architecture. How do these backgrounds integrate? Can this culmination of different abilities become challenging? It is extremely challenging integrating our different perspectives – based on our specialties, you can encounter all phases and scales of project development simultaneously

Wave Dilfert by The Principals

2012-10-23T12:41:00-04:00

The Principals' latest exploration of interactive architecture, Wave Dilfert, reads the changes in light and shadow occurring within it, catalogs and calculates them, then pulses, contracts or expands in reaction.

The Principals present the newest chapter in their exploration of interactive architecture,
Wave Dilfert: Wave (moves in wave-form oscillations) + Dilfert (geek-like intelligence, absorbs information like a sponge). Wave Dilfert is a new kind of space that reads the changes in light and shadow occurring within it, catalogs and calculates them, then pulses, contracts or expands in reaction. The installation was inspired by the work of Ushahidi; a non-profit, crowdsourcing disaster relief, tech innovator. Much how Ushahidi de-mystifies the complexities of war-torn or disastor ridden locales, The Principals developed a system that could de-mystify the complexities of space through sourcing the information of its users and making it accessible through interaction.

The largest and most ambitious yet of The Principals’ research installations, Wave Dilfert was designed and displayed for The Feast, an international ideas conference held in NYC on October 5 and 6. The installation measu...

Dune X exhibition at the 18th Biennale of Sydney

2012-07-17T11:35:00-04:00

Constructed on Sydney’s Harbour’s Cockatoo Island, the interactive 42 meter-long landscape installation, entitled Dune, is composed of hundreds of fibres that brighten according to human sounds in what Roosegaarde describes as “techno-poetry”.

Dune X is an interactive landscape of light for the 18th Biennale of Sydney that visibly reacts to the behavior of people that come into close proximity. Hundreds of sensors detect motion, and optical fibers dim and brighten in response to the movements of people passing by.

Dune X is being exhibited at the dark Dogleg tunnels on Cockatoo Island in Sydney. For those unable to visit, Studio Roosegaarde made a video, especially for the Biennale of Sydney, that is supposed to give an impression of what to expect with 'Dune X'. The movie (below) resembles a real-life ‘Alice in techno-land' and is displayed all around Sydney during the Biennale.

Studio Roosegaarde (Rotterdam-The Netherlands) is the social design lab of artist and architect Daan Roosegaarde. By creating interactive designs that instinctively respond to sound and movement, Roosegaarde explores the dawn of a new nature that is evolving from technological innovations. The studio is well known for its awarded interactiv...