Dikhroos: A Public Space Activator, designed by Architensions
"If we look through a blue pane of glass, everything afterwards appears in sunshine to the naked eye, even if the sky is gray and the scene is colorless”.—Goethe, Theory of Colours
Brooklyn, New York — Dikhroos is a public space activator conceived as a portable tent adaptable to different modes of assembly. It engages the users through its properties of a chromatic space that constantly changes depending on the condition of light.
The tent typology is symbolic of housing and sheltering for the nomadic life, especially in specific regions of Central Asia. These tents are held up using hand spun yak wool rope and a limited number of wooden poles. They are easy to assemble and light to transport.
Architensions reimagines the tent typology for Greenpoint Open Studios 2017 hosted by Java Studios, studying a simple assembly of bamboo poles to maintain the idea of an easy and fast aggregation of elements and at the same time rethinking the protective layer of the tent which needs to provide shelter from the rain and the sun.
Architensions treated the layer as an intermediate material through which the user will relate to their surroundings, whether it is a courtyard in an urban environment, or other public spaces within our cities. In our design this layer offers different ways of seeing or interacting with reality and it has been identified with a dichroic film produced by 3M applied on a vinyl sheet. This newly made composite panel is capable to perform the action of protecting from the rain and can also function as a shading device, producing a wide range of colorful effects and reflections as a result of its optical properties. Furthermore the film is able to filter 97% of the UV radiation from the sun making it a perfect for the summer.
The word dichroic is derived from the Greek dikhroos, meaning two-colored, and relates to any optical device which can split a beam of light into two beams with differing wavelengths, giving a dynamic look to these iridescent surfaces which changes colors depending on someone’s position or light angles transforming the tent in a chromatic space. The user will be able to experience many different conditions, according with the change of light during the day or its relative position within the space or its surroundings. Seeing through a chromatic space will give the possibility to reveal the complementary colors of reality.
The basic 8-foot-by-8-foot modular structure is designed with a faceted roof as a strategy to eliminate rain water. Bamboo was preferred because it’s a green material and it allows for simple peg & ties joints and can easily fit into custom 3D printed joints. The module allows for different configurations and modules assembly depending on the function and the type of gathering.
The four follies with the function of stimulating “seeing” of the users will sit on the landscape with their iridescent faceted roofs like an insect with beautiful colored changing wings. In the words of John Berger “seeing establishes our place in the surrounding world, we explain that world with words, but words can never undo the fact that we are surrounded by it”. Dikhroos with its powerful natural phenomena will establish a strong link between public spaces and its visitors.
Project Credits:
Design Principals: Alessandro Orsini & Nick Roseboro
Project Designer: Jianwei Li
Project Manager: Giorgia Geradi
Team: Gerald Rubia
Consultants: Shrikar Bhave – Transsolar; Kilma Engineering
Module Area: 5.94 m2 / 64 sf
Aggregate Area: 23.78 m2 / 256 sf
Photography: Elizabeth Leitzell
Mural: Will Hutnick
Client: Java Studios, Greenpoint Open Studios Launch Party 2017
Location: Brooklyn, New York, USA
