Bubble-ism - Architectures of Foam
The lecture by Chris Bosse is presented by
Chris Bosse, Architect /Sydney, Stuttgart, Abu Dhabi
05. September 2008
at 7 pm
Location: Taut Saal
Chris Bosse, winner of the Architectural Review Awards for Emerging Architecture, connects form generating processes in nature with digital technologies in the design and building process. This has lead to buildings such as the spectacular design of the National Aquatics Centre in Beijing. In July 2003, the Water Cube design was chosen from 10 proposals in an international architectural competition for the aquatic center project. The Water Cube was designed and built by a consortium made up of PTW Architects (an Australian architecture firm), Chris Bosse, Arup international engineering group, CSCEC (China State Construction Engineering Corporation), and CCDI (China Construction Design International) of Shanghai. The watercube has set a new standard in environmental sports design, not only in China but throughout the world.
Comprising a steel space frame, it is the largest ETFE clad structure in the world with over 100,000 m² of ETFE pillows that are only 0.2 mm (1/125 of an inch) in total thickness. The ETFE cladding allows more light and heat penetration than traditional glass, resulting in a 30% decrease in energy costs. The outer wall is based on the Weaire-Phelan structure, a structure devised from the natural formation of bubbles in soap foam. The complex Weaire-Phelan pattern was developed by slicing through bubbles in soap foam, resulting in more irregular, organic patterns than foam bubble structures proposed earlier by the scientist Kelvin. Using the Weaire-Phelan geometry, the Water Cube's exterior cladding is made of 4,000 ETFE bubbles, some as large as 9.14 meters across, with seven different sizes for the roof and 15 for the walls.
Chris Bosse's new office is L.A.V.A Laboratory for Visionary Architecture, together with Tobias Wallisser, in Sydney, Stuttgart and Abu Dhabi and works world-wide on future orientated projects.
Lecture in German only.
Further information on Chris Bosse at
www.chrisbosse.de
