Ateliér à Torcí Facade
Agency
Batir France Ingéniere S.A.
Practice Area
Client
N/A
Industry
Project Vision
France’s Ille-et-Vilaine region in the east of Brittany is an important art, history, and culture center. Surrounded by its medieval architecture and cultural treasures, a modern business park sits on the busy expressway linking Rennes with LeMans.
A well-known cheese company located in the business park saw the opportunity for high visibility along the expressway. In Fall 2007, the building’s façade was covered with 167 square meters of Illumesh, a metal fabric mesh made of recycled stainless steel with integrated LED technology.
During the day, offices behind the transparent façade have an unobstructed view outward, while the exteror of the building takes on a shimmering, metallic look. At night, the façade pulses with color effects created by projecting washes of LED-rendered color onto the mesh curtain. Projection of the color onto the round stinless steel wires comprising the mesh adds a three-dimensional quality to the display.
Project Details
A façade is beautifully animated when light becomes architecture. This project is part of a newly emerging family of design that extends traditional understanding of materiality and surface to include the ephemeral.
For architects and EGD practitioners alike, this a terrfic new medium with which to ‘paint’ buildings. Fluid, graphic, industrial, and architectural, this simple wash of undulating color only begins to exploit the potential of the dynamic new product. I can’t wait until I have the opportunity to use this product.
Design Team
France’s Ille-et-Vilaine region in the east of Brittany is an important art, history, and culture center. Surrounded by its medieval architecture and cultural treasures, a modern business park sits on the busy expressway linking Rennes with LeMans.A well-known cheese company located in the business park saw the opportunity for high visibility along the expressway. In Fall 2007, the building’s façade was covered with 167 square meters of Illumesh, a metal fabric mesh made of recycled stainless steel with integrated LED technology.During the day, offices behind the transparent façade have an unobstructed view outward, while the exteror of the building takes on a shimmering, metallic look. At night, the façade pulses with color effects created by projecting washes of LED-rendered color onto the mesh curtain. Projection of the color onto the round stinless steel wires comprising the mesh adds a three-dimensional quality to the display.
Design Firm
Batir France Ingéniere S.A.
Project Area
167 square meters
Consultants
ag4 (mediafaçade)
Fabricators
“A façade is beautifully animated when light becomes architecture. This project is part of a newly emerging family of design that extends traditional understanding of materiality and surface to include the ephemeral.”“ For architects and EGD practitioners alike, this a terrfic new medium with which to ‘paint’ buildings. Fluid, graphic, industrial, and architectural, this simple wash of undulating color only begins to exploit the potential of the dynamic new product. I can’t wait until I have the opportunity to use this product.”