Green net shades hammocks and bird feeders in Murmuration by SO-IL

Architecture studio SO-IL has built a green-mesh structure with suspended seating in this installation on the Renzo Piano-designed plaza of the High Museum of Art in Atlanta.

SO-IL created the structure to temporarily occupy the plaza in front of the extension that Italian architect Renzo Piano added to the High Museum of Art in 2005.

Green agricultural netting is pulled taught over a six green metal poles and stretched across curved metalwork to create a canopy that shades circular hammocks suspended beneath.

The shape of each canopy – which tapers in at the top and the bottom – is intended to reference that of trees. Plants are then woven throughout the netting.

"As they cross the Piazza, guests are enveloped by a foliage-filled mesh canopy suspended from a steel framework, evocative of the tree canopies found throughout the region," SO-IL told Dezeen.

The New York studio, which is led by Florian Idenburg and Jing Liu, came up with the installation as part of its effort to give migratory birds a place for respite in the city. Its shape and name draws on a Murmuration, which is when a huge flock of birds flying together and form different patterns, and is decorated with bird feeders.

"Using the lens of bird migrations, it reacts to Atlanta's relationship with the natural world," said SO-IL.

"Creating a sustainable future for Atlanta includes maintaining or increasing the number of trees," it added. "In its title and concept, ​Murmuration​ also directly advocates for conservation efforts toward birds, questioning their loss and the terms for our future environment."

In addition to seating for museum visitors, Murmuration also features bird feeders hanging from its frame.

SO-IL worked with local engineers Uzun & Case to complete the design of the 218-square-metre structure, which was fabricated in Mexico and then transported to site.

The intention is that it can be disassembled and installed elsewhere following its stint at High Museum of Art, which ends in November 2020.

Idenburg and Liu founded SO-IL in New York in 2008 in New York. Its other temporary projects include an installation in Columbus that covered 130 trees in pink, yellow and blue nylon webbing and a performance piece that created air-filtering mesh costumes capable of cleaning air through breathing.

Photography is by Fredrik Bauer.

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Project credits:

Design team: Florian Idenburg, Ted Baab, Andrew Gibbs, Ray Rui Wu Collaborator:
Structural engineer: Uzun + Case, Atlanta, GA, USA
Fabricator: Factor Eficiencia, Mexico City, Mexico

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Surrounded by Feathers, Birds Clutch Their Bleeding Hearts in Christina Mrozik’s Monochromatic Illustrations

“Safekeeping,” graphite on paper, 15 x 19 inches. All images © Christina Mrozik, shared with permission

Just as they’d carry a seed to a new location, the birds in Portland-based artist Christina Mrozik’s latest series tightly grasp pulsing hearts in their talons. The graphite illustrations intertwine masses of feathers and avian body parts with the still bleeding organs, suggesting that they recently were ripped from the chests to cause their descent.

Coraticum—cor means heart in Latin—is an exploration of reconstruction, one that’s defined by bringing the heart outside the body. “It represents the beginning place from which feelings unfold, the center, the seed. I see this as the place before the stem or the root, before the flower or the honey,” they say. As a whole, the series considers the difficult emotions necessary for transformation. Mrozik (previously) tells Colossal the project was born out of personal upheaval in their life, which they explain:

I had been undergoing a major rearrangement in my relationship, rewiring my brain’s response to chronic pain and learning about the history of trauma on my nervous system. The way I moved internally was under massive rearrangement and self-scrutiny, and I was doing my best to find where to put things. Then quarantine hit and it felt like the work of rearrangement was happening externally on a global level.

Each monochromatic illustration is connected to a specific step of the reconstruction process: “The Eye of Recollection” to memory, “Safekeeping” to self-preservation, “The Ten Intuitions” to desire and instinct, “Colliding in Reverse” to letting go, and “Untethering Permissions” to questions about authority.

Coraticum is currently on view at Portland’s Antler Gallery, which will be sharing virtual tours of the solo show in the coming weeks. You can find prints, pins, and books of Mrozik’s surreal compositions in their shop, and follow their work on Instagram. (via Supersonic Art)

 

“Colliding in Reverse,” graphite on paper, 15 x 19 inches

“Untethering Permissions,” graphite on paper, 15 x 19 inches

“The Ten Intuitions,” graphite on paper, 15 x 19 inches

“The Eye of Recollection,” graphite on paper, 15 x 17, graphite on paper

“Good Morning Moon,” 14 x 21 inches

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Architectural visualisers imagine rainbow-coloured Sonora Art Village during pandemic

Moscow designers Davit and Mary Jilavyan spent the coronavirus lockdown creating renderings of an imaginary community in Mexico with two-toned buildings and streets dotted with cacti and swimming pools.

Architect Davit and designer Mary created the computer images during the Covid-19 pandemic for a community in a nondescript, arid site with hills incorporated into the property.

The buildings feature bright pink, green, orange, blue and yellow exteriors that take cues from works by Mexican architect Luis Barragán and Spanish architect Ricardo Bofill, who are both known for their use of bold colours.

The images show that as the sun rises and sets across the landscape, the colours of the town change in saturation and hue.

Many of the houses are two- or three-storeys, and walkways meander around barrier walls and boulders that are planted with cacti and flowers bushes. Home at the perimeter have views to the rocky desert and horizon beyond.

"In Sonora Art Village there is no clear system, the houses are located chaotically, each house has its own colourful path," Davit and Mary Jilavyan said. "Some houses are higher, some are lower, so the village has a lot of small stairs, which makes it feel like you're going up and down in a game like Super Mario."

Arches, passageways and overhanging volumes add to the geometry of the concept, while zig-zagging pathways and steps pass by the homes and link them together for a walkable scheme. Plazas, lounge areas, outdoor swimming pools and basketball courts round out the proposal.

The Jilavyans created the imaginary Sonora Art Village while in coronavirus lockdown in Moscow and said the project's brightness and creativity give them a sense of relief and happiness.

"Sitting in self-isolation, surrounded by four walls, it occurred to us to create a whole village from houses like Sonora House," the duo added. "We wanted to create a place where people can come and feel for a while in a completely different place, far from the grey reality, to feel in some bright 3D space or even a cartoon."

Aside from the isolation they experience currently and the sense of community the project provides, the design also offers a feeling of freedom.

"Sonora Art Village is an explosion of our emotions, it's what we lack in reality," they said. "It's a place free from prejudice. There's no place for racism, sexism, humiliation. We tried to create a completely different atmosphere that would exude joy, love and happiness."

The development came about after a friend from Mexico first tasked them to make a colourful house for a family named Sonora House, which featured a gabled roofline and white windows that pop out from the facade.

"Thanks to the way our house was warmly welcomed, we thought that maybe we should continue this idea, and came up with a whole village of similar houses, where people can relax," they said. "Our goal was to do something as simple as last time but unusual."

"This is just a concept, non-commercial, just a piece of art," they added. "But we would be happy if one day our project became a reality to let people dive into a completely different atmosphere."

The Jilavyans are among a wave of visual artists that have created utopian landscapes, buildings and interiors for armchair escapists during the coronavirus pandemic.

Others include interior designer and creative director Charlotte Taylor, who collaborates with a roster of 3D artists to realise imaginary spaces. She told Dezeen that these type of projects "feed into people's imaginations and appetite for a change of scenery, be it completely impossible or not".

A number of similar creative projects have been borne out of the coronavirus lockdown like Invisible Cities by artists Camille Benoit and Mariana Gella, which are architectural models of fantastical cities made from paper and tools they had at home.

New York designer Eny Lee Parker also developed an Instagram competition tasking people to model tiny clay versions of their ideal homes. Parker kicked off the Clay Play contest with her polymer clay creation and then called for others to make their "ideal room".

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Clova is an AI-powered lamp that reads books to children

South Korean technology company Naver Corp has developed a smart reading light called Clova that helps children to cultivate healthy reading habits by narrating their books aloud.

Using computer vision and artificial intelligence technology, the lamp is able to convert the text and images from a book into speech, while an integrated virtual assistant can explain the meaning of words and answer kids' questions to help them learn.

In this way, the product hopes to replace smartphones as the go-to method of independent entertainment when parents are unable to play with their children.

"Kids need to hear books frequently to foster their thinking skills, concentration, imagination and creativity but not all parents can read books to their kids as much as they would like," James Kim, the head of Clova's design team, told Dezeen.

"The Clova lamp allows kids to hear their favourite books by themselves whenever they want, to help them develop an interest in reading."

The product takes the form of a classic desk lamp, rendered in matte white, shock-resistant plastic, with a hemispherical head that is angled down towards the desk.

This holds a ring-shaped LED light with a small camera at its centre, which uses image recognition technology to decode illustrations and identifies written words using Optical Character Recognition (OCR).

After being analysed by the system's cloud-based AI, the input from the camera is then converted into speech.

"Clova reads out books that are placed underneath it when the 'read' button is hit or a voice command is given," said Kim.

"It speaks in a natural [Korean] voice, developed using voice synthesis technology to create a more engaging experience for listeners. It can also read English and Japanese books with a native-like, human-sounding voice that can intrigue kids to self-study these languages."

A list of completed books is stored by the device, rewarding kids with badges for different milestones while offering parents insight into their reading patterns and helping them to choose the right literature for their children.

In its function as a lamp, Clova is able to sense the environmental factors that can influence the reading experience and provide a responsive light that is easy on the eyes.

"It automatically senses the brightness of the surroundings and picks one of five lighting levels to match," said Kim.

"The colour temperature has four modes – reading, creativity, repair and sleep – which were designed based on a pool of data around different learning environments."

As the South Korean equivalent to Google, Naver Corp runs the country's most used search engine, Naver. Since its founding in 1999, the company has largely focused on online services, with its subsidiary also operating the popular instant messaging app Line, which has 200 million users predominantly across Japan, Taiwan and parts of Southeast Asia.

In recent years, however, the business has invested heavily into research and development around AI, robotics and mobility. Naver made its debut at the Consumer Electronics Show last year with 13 different innovations including a robotic arm that can be remote-controlled using 5G.

Elsewhere, a number of designers have turned their focus towards creating toys that help children foster a healthier relationship to technology.

Matthieu Muller developed a series of cardboard attachments, which can be used in tandem with a smartphone to turn it into a toy car or spaceship, while Pentagram collaborated with tech startup Yoto to create an interactive audio player that does not rely on a screen.

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Anti-drone antennas set to be built on top of Oscar Niemeyer palaces in Brásilia

The Brazilian government is planning to install anti-drone antennas on the Oscar Niemeyer-designed Planalto, Alvorada and Jaburu palaces in Brásilia, which would disrupt the clean form of the modernist buildings.

Brazil's Institutional Security Office (GSI) is planning to place a 1.5-metre antenna on top of the Planalto Palace and five-metre antennas on the Alvorado and Jaburu palaces in Brásilia to protect the area from drones.

The move follows a previous plan for taller antenna that was turned down by Brazil's preservation agency due to the impact they would have had on the buildings.

Iphan under pressure to approve plans 

The current proposal was sent to Brazil's National Historical and Artistic Heritage Institute (Iphan) in June, according to Brasília-based website Metrópoles.

Metrópoles reports that Iphan, which hasn't yet approved the proposal, is being pressured by the government to do so.

GSI had contracted a company to install the system for detecting and neutralising drones, which it says are "becoming commonplace", in the area around Brásilia's Planalto, Alvorada and Jaburu.

The latest proposal came after the government's first plan was blocked by Iphan. This had entailed installing larger antennas on all three buildings, with a 20-metre-high antenna placed for the Planalto Palace's roof, a 10-metre-high antenna added to president Jair Bolsonaro's Alvorada residence, and a six-metre-high antenna set on the roof of Jaburu.

All three palaces were designed by iconic Brazilian architect Niemeyer in the 1950s to 1970s as part of his creation of the Brazilian capital.

Anti-drone antennas would directly impact the palaces

Cables supporting the antennas would create a pyramid shape that would notably impact the horizontal lines of Niemeyer's low-rise modernist buildings, which is what led Iphan to block the original proposal in April.

"It must be considered that iconic buildings such as the presidential palaces, historic heritage sites that have been recognized and internationally recognized for their modern architecture, impose limits on interventions, which must be directed towards the least possible impact," stated Iphan at the time.

It concluded that the proposed anti-drone equipment would directly impact the palaces.

The response also set out guidelines for the installation of the equipment, stating: "If they are elements integrated into the architecture of the palaces, the new equipment cannot be visible from the point of view of the observer, so as not to impair the reading of the volumetry of the palaces."

Drones "no longer just for leisure and as a work tool"

Secretary of security general Luiz Fernando Estorilho Baganha, believes that the antenna are necessary due to increased risk to security that drones pose.

"One must consider the urgency that the matter requires, in addition to the presidential security subject being an act provided for by law, the use of drones is no longer just for leisure and as a work tool, but is now used in acts of threat and hostile actions, bringing risks and being increasingly applied for different shady purposes," he said.

"The appearance of drones is becoming commonplace and demonstrating a vulnerability to the security activity of the highest authorities in the executive branch," he added.

Dezeen's film Elevation looked at how transport, deliveries, construction and architecture will be transformed by drones.

They are becoming more commonly used in cities, with New York officials proposing using drones to inspect buildings and MVRDV and Airbus researching landing hubs for passenger drones.

Photograph of Planalto Palace is by Webysther.

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