NoRA

January 8th, 2007

The NoRA structure designed by students of Architecture & Design, Aalborg University, was presented at the Venice Architecture Biennale as an interactive architecture exploring how advanced architectural computing and sensor technology could attach the individual perception of place to temporary structures acting as agents for urban experiences. Architectural entities often closing up communication with the urban environment were questioned in a media architecture where the ‘capsules’ of urbanism contains a particular quality.

Excellent Paper that supports the Nora project and explores the ideas of Performative Urban Environments by Ole B. Jensen & Bo Stjerne Thomsen

Video of the making of Nora

In this way the moveable structure of NoRA embedded the potential for ‘in-between’ spaces to become new meaningful places and hence new types of ‘public domains’. This thinking leans on Performative Environments as a notion of what a building does instead of what it is, opening up for an urban architecture to be dynamic, open and facilitating self-organising, communicative environments for an organized complexity between flows of local interactions and network behaviour.

The design concept for NoRA was initiated through fluid dynamics software absorbing site characteristics as cultural movements, light and shadow into the organic mass. As a build structure NoRA was transported to the Island of San Servolo in Venice and programmed to release its variable sound and light scheme according to the movements of people around the building as well as a acting as a medium and stage setting for the users of the program facilities to project into the urban environment.

See Website

Here’s a full list all those involved, and my thanks to Bo for informing me of the project.

Entry Filed under: Audio, Interactive, Lighting