0°01’ W Network IN [E]motion by NOVAE Architecture

Italy-based NOVAE Architecture shared with us their project “0°01’ W Network in [e]motion”, their proposal for a competition to design an adaptable floating gallery in London, UK. More images and architect’s description after the break.

The challenge involves the design of a mobile architecture gallery built to contain and distribute – both metaphorically and literally – ideas for the city as whole. The installation travels along the River Thames, connecting in this way a number of artistic spaces, and picking up visitors along the riverbank, particularly at South Bank. This container vessel have to be versatile and the exhibition space must be able to adapt itself to the movement of the river.

The 0°01’ W Network IN [E]motion consists of a lightweight structure installed upon a floating barge, with a basic area of approximately 500 m2. The concept is a sort of crystalline network idea: an anisotropy structure shaping through simple movement, a crystalline network break itself becoming a mobile adaptable machine: the break makes happen flexible modification capable to form different inner spaces looking toward the river. The object is easily distinguishable from all the other types of vessels which currently navigate the river, picking up people, get into a floating urban movement in a changeover condition, the gallery comes into a constant mutation with the city, continuously changing itself, coming into being now a bow, now a floating room, now a bridge; it ‘s capable of altering through its “temporary” presence the urban profile of the city, while at the same time being able to incorporate itself into the miscellaneous context of modern‐day London.

Breaking water: the idea is to create a new “social” landscape, flowing in a new configuration: spaces form by gradual solidification of water. The floating gallery is a recognizable object able to make its “temporary” presence felt in the context of the urban profile of the city. Working into an idea of clever changing, the gallery is a transformer machine, it changes according to the weather conditions using clever glasses that are capable to became an opaque, colorful or translucid surface; changing their behavior broad light create different conditions of illumination and temperature inside spaces, reducing the energy consumption for the condition of the environment.

Architect: NOVAE Architecture
Location: London, England

Project Team: Annalisa Gallo, Nicoletta Gerevini, Daniele W. Re

Collaboration: Daniela Prinzo
Covering area: 500 m2