A Re-Ball Spatial Experience

Washington, United States

2016

Nebula takes its name from the interstellar constellation, the formation of the celestial spheres that have been the study object in one of the oldest sciences and is now revisited as an expressive participatory, architectural piece; a piece that promotes social interaction through its’ transformative character. Nebula’s ever-changing form is much influenced by the astronomical phenomena that have always captivated the human imagination and sustained a mystifying character.    

The special array of spheres highlights the enduring fascination of the natural phenomenon and amplifies the contrast between the feeling of underground space and the beauty of a limitless universe. The transparent properties of the synthetic material augment this perception; adding depth and complexity through a flawless display of infinite orbicular refractions. The design output creates a dynamic surface that inherits a multitude of shades from its context and forever adapts to the visitor’s input. 

A set mechanism in place offers a unique means of exploring various direct alterations on Nebula’s overhead global form. The mechanism itself, a set of elegant gears and strings, is positioned strategically at certain points along the cryptic underground passage. Each visitor is experiencing both actively and passively Nebula’s world through a continuous movement of its’ aggregate spheres. This movement is perceived via the observer’s changing viewpoint; both when it is the observer who is alternating the floating sphere constellation or another visitor. The alteration through the mechanism is equally open to the poetic gaze of the senior visitor who fully appreciates the creation of patterns as well as open to the playful eyes of a younger visitor who is set to discover the perception games of space reconfiguration.