what do you get when you fuse green into avant-garde? well, you get a giant lilypad!
lilypad is the latest vision in today’s sustainable trend, designed by the architect vincent callebaut in accordance to global climate change. intended to house 50,000 climate change refugees, these giant city islands float in the ocean, travelling around the world.
obviously inspired by the giant lilypad, it also performs purification process by absorbing huge amounts of CO2 and turning them into oxygen. excellent example of biomimicry- a term for studying nature for ideas and solution to problems. I’m fine with biomimicry as long as you don’t touch iconology. man, to hell with iconology and symbolism.
a section of the lilypad. we all love sections dont we? well, the lilypad does remind me a lot of other avant-garde projects. probably the most original example is the walking city.
walking city is visioned by ron herron of the archigram group. fyi, peter cook is also affliated with archigram. heck, this idea was born in 1962 and I believe we already have the technology for these. it’s just a financial improbability.
“Moving cities proved to be ahead of their time. The Archigram city was to help workers be closer to their offices in the morning. How dull. But now I telecommute every day. Perhaps that’s duller. I’d certainly prefer a house with legs to my study-room.” - Archigram
well back in my childhood years, I still can remember the arcology in simcity 2000.
arcology are in fact derived from the words architecture and ecology, popularized by the architect paolo soleri in 1968.
these ideas have struck me ever since. plus, I did plan a city-island in my primary school, but the sketches has been lost in time. I’ve always wondered what is the profession that does these back then. well today I’m glad I’m in the right track.
read-ups;
an architectural student from malaysia, studying in curtin university of technology, pursuing his degree in architectural science. contact at yang(at)yangsquare.com
