MID Computational Design Students realize architectural art installation at ‘Burning Man 2017’

At the end of August, 13 students from three faculties of  University of Applied Sciences (HS OWL) will travel to the Black Rock Desert in Nevada, USA. What are they doing? Art! For the festival “Burning Man” the team builds a four meter high art object called “Desert Eyes”. They are the only German team to have received a personal invitation and a starting capital from the organizers.

 

The “Burning Man” is one of the most famous festivals in the world and famous for its particularly imaginative and whimsical art objects – and for the burning of a human like statue, the Burning Man, on the sixth day of the festival. From 27 August to 4 September 2017 about 70,000 people are expected in the Blackrock desert. In the middle of them, a team of around 15 students from the University of Applied Sciences (HS OWL) will be present. “We are very honored to be able to realize our vision in the desert,” says Student Pooya Kamranjam, who heads the project together with student Yonnie Kweon. A geodesic dome is planned, which reflects its entire environment through a metallic surface. “It is a symbolic construct, a combination of nature and technology,” says Yonnie. During the day sunlight penetrates through the openings of the tubes and throws bizarre structures into the darkness. At night, the 360 ​​° inner experience is continued with the help of an interactive lighting concept. “In addition, there is a very spherical sound design through which the technology should blend with emotions,” says Yonnie.For the project, students have an almost six-digit amount of money estimated. “The promotion by the festival is a great recognition, but unfortunately it does not cover the overall costs at all” says Frederic Hellmann from the media team of the project group. The team is currently looking for sponsors to support the students in this unique project. “We are putting the project together in the team – but the original vision, the first design comes from Pooya and Yonnie.”

 

“We are a committed, international team”
Pooya Kamranjam originally comes from Iran and Yonnie Kweon originally from Australia. Both are master students at the Detmold School of Architecture and Interior Architecture at OWL and developed the idea for the futuristic dome in Professor Hans Sachs’ teaching area. They are supported by fellow students of their field of study and by a group of students from Lemgo. The media team, consisting of four students from the Department of Media Production, takes care of the public appearance and the creative presentation of the entire project. Five students from the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science are developing an effective, interactive lighting concept. “In this project, we have a very diverse range of competences – we are a committed, interdisciplinary and very international team, enriching each other with ideas and know-how,” says
Pooya.

 

 

The Detmold campus agency
Professor Hans Sachs, Professor Christoph Althaus and Professor Carsten Röcker provide the professional support from the three disciplines. The project is coordinated within the framework of the Detmolder Campusagentur, a so-called virtual company, by Ricarda Jacobi. One goal of the Campusagentur is to make the teaching practice-oriented, to offer interdisciplinary projects
and the self-responsibility and goal orientation of students. A first impression of the design of the dome is given on the social media platforms of the project:

Website: www.deserteyes.net

Facebook: Desert Eyes lnstagram: thedeserteyes

YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCEmZKtd28Ey5HdVi-D2wdwA (Desert Eyes)