To mark the beginning of it's first ever Engineering Season, the V&A has revealed a new large-scale installation in the John Madjeski Garden; Elytra Filament Pavilion. 

The pavilion's components have been fabricated by a robot at the University of Stuttgart and then assembled on site. Utilsing biomimicry principles the structure is inspired by lightweight construction principles found in nature, specifically the fibrous structures of the forewing shells of flying beetles known as elytra.

This is the first public commission in the UK for experimental architect Achim Menges who has teamed up with Moritz Dörstelmann, structural engineer Jan Knippers and climate engineer Thomas Auer.

Achim Menges said: “Advances in the technologies of making have always been a catalyst for design innovation, which is nowhere more evident than at the V&A. With Elytra Filament Pavilion we aim to celebrate a truly contemporary and integrative approach to design, engineering and production, resulting in a distinctive spatial and aesthetic experience."

Over the course of the season, the configuration of the pavilion will grow and change depending on the engagement and movement of visitors under the canopy. This data, as well as structural data will be recorded by real-time sensors integrated into the canopy fibres. The information gathered will be mapped and published online. 

Elytra Filament Pavilion marks four years of ground-breaking research into the synthesis of architecture, engineering and biomimicry principles and will be open to the public throughout the Engineering Season. 

Read more about the V&A Engineering Season here: 

• Shortlist announced for UK's top museum prize
• V&A East project update
• London's V&A to host a robot construction team this summer