This is currently under construction but when completed it will be the main swimming venue for use in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. I love the overall look of this "Water Cube". The concept of the structure was based around that of soap bubbles and the way that they appear in a regular geometric pattern yet each one forms an irregular shape itself. The designers and Engineers from Arup have done a really good job at making something new, innovative and most of all original.
The building is currently under construction however when completed it will consist of the large steal frame with each bubble made and altered individually to create the desired look, once they are attached to the structure they will be inflated and have air constantly pumped into them so that they maintain their shape. The actual size of some of these bubbles will be up to 9 metres in diameter.
One of the main things that I like about this design is that the concept is not simply applied to the outside as decoration. The wall of air and plastic is also that on the interior and would create a very surreal and open feeling inside.
On a practical note the only problem that I can foresee with this design is that it will be costly to run and potentially noisy inside. However the designers have anticipated the high maintenance costs and where possible are using things like solar energy sources to heat the pool. I have been really taken with this proposed construction; it appears to be due for completion in October 2007. I think that if they can do this so it is as close to the original design proposal as possible it will be a really impressive building.
3 comments:
This is a really interesting piece of design, I will be keen to see the finished product. However I wonder how regulating the temperature will work as condensation dripping from those huge bubbles into the pool could be very annoying for the swimmers!
Looks cool, but really have to consider effectiveness...is it solving a problem or creating one to be solved? Efficiency and envirnomental friendliness should be at the top if the designers agenda. Interesting, I'm going to look into it more!
Certainly a design that is eye catching and will attract a huge amount of visitors to go and look at it. From a practicality point of view though I wonder how they will maintain this building looking new and clean? Wiping each bubble individually would be extremely time consuming and expensive. Another query is what would happen if one of the plastic bubbles broke or burst. Could another replica easily be made if each bubble is different in shape? Could the replacement then be fitted into the structure straightforwardly? Overall I think that the design really suits the product and it is a great selling point to go alongside the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
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