As part of an effort to encourage and promote energy efficiency, the Land Art Generator contributed to an article on Redfin this week along with nine other organizations.
The advice from all the contributors is super helpful! For example, did you know that solar panels actually work more efficiently in the winter?
We hope you'll take a minute to check it out.
Read the article here or by clicking on the thumbnail below.
New Mexico Science Festival
Land Art Generator Directors will hold an interactive presentation with families:
Picnic at a Power Plant: Renewable Energy Can be Beautiful
Date and Time of live presentation:
Saturday, September 19 at 6:00 pm
More information here >
The New Mexico Science Fiesta aims to inspire interest in science, technology, engineering, math, and art (STEAM) and its impact on our everyday lives and our future.
2020 Dates: September 18-26
Land Art Generator Directors will be speaking during:
The role of renewable energy in post COVID-19 public spaces
Thursday August 27, 2.00 - 3.30pm CET
Series 4 (August) - Webinar 4
More here >
This webinar is part of the initiative '2020: A Year without Public Space under the COVID-19 Pandemic'.
Research into energy transition from carbon to renewable energy sources points to the importance, and possible conflicts, of enlarging the footprint of renewable energy generators into the public space. The future planning of our cities will require a greater sensibility to the integration and occupation of space by ever more present PV panels, microturbines, etc. However, the current planning system is ill-equipped to this task while there are many issues related to the public opposition to the visual, sound, and space impacts of renewables.
At the same time, the experience of the COVID 19 pandemic has exacerbated the pressures about the use of public space by introducing a new concept in our design approach: “the physical distancing”. Physical distancing promises to contain the spread of the pandemic by 1. Stay at about 2m from other people; 2. Do not gather in groups; Stay out of crowded places and avoid mass gatherings. Whatever approach we use, the concept of the physical distance results in an “enlargement” of our footprint resulting in an increasing need for public space.
For example, some municipalities have proposed to give businesses the possibility to use part of public space for free. In this way, it has been argued, it would be easier to attract customers and ensure the physical “distancing”. In a few cases, agreements have been reached between different businesses such as restaurants so that the same tables could be used for different purposes at different times of the day.
However, this is creating the unfortunate situation that businesses and private citizens are competing for the use of public space since not everyone can afford to seat in a restaurant or drink a Starbucks coffee. The likely outcome of it is more inequality between who can pay for accessing some services and who cannot.
Our point of departure is that this “scramble for public space” has to be tackled with an integrative perspective. This means that the design thinking process has to deal at once with the triple issue of making public space accessible to all while generating energy for the public and be of support for the new physical distancing requirements for the businesses.
We would like to discuss how integrated urban design with renewable energy systems can contribute to re-imaging the future public space. Some questions to be explored are: how to design new concepts for public spaces, that couple the energy generation function with other, new functions, that are people-oriented? How to involve the citizens in the process of producing the energy they need in a socially and economically sustainable way while preserving the living environment?
Event Managers
Ying Fen Chen & Stephanie Cheung, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Hosts
Luisa Bravo, City Space Architecture & The Journal of Public Space, Italy
Hendrik Tieben, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, School of Architecture, Hong Kong
Co-hosts
Alessandra Scognamiglio, ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), Italy
Agatino Rizzo, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden
Introduction
Agatino Rizzo, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden
Discussion chair
Alessandra Scognamiglio, ENEA (Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development), Italy
Speakers
Björn Ekelund, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden
Daniele Santucci, Climateflux, Germany
Robert Ferry and Elizabeth Monoian, Land Art Generator, United States
Taichi Kuma, Kengo Kuma and Associates, Japan
Jorge Toledo García, University of Alicante / Ecosistema Urbano, Spain
Commentator
Vincent Kitio, UN-Habitat, Chief of the Urban Energy Unit
Round Table Discussion, moderated by Alessandra Scognamiglio and Agatino Rizzo
Q&A with the audience, moderated by Ying Fen Chen, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong
Burning Man Live: Fly Ranch and the Land Art Generator Initiative
EPISODE SUMMARY
An otherworldly oasis in the desert. Water, wildlife, wonder, responsibility, and possibility. Zac manages Fly Ranch in Nevada. He shares about stewarding the majestic and extreme natural sanctuary.
Elizabeth and Robert direct the Land Art Generator, and challenge artists and engineers — anyone — to design aesthetic and harmonious energy infrastructure for prototyping in the extreme environment of Fly Ranch.
EPISODE NOTES
Zac Cirivello, Operations Manager of Fly Ranch, Nevada
Robert Ferry & Elizabeth Monoian, founding Co-Directors of the Land Art Generator Initiative
Will Roger Peterson, one of the 6 founders, tells of how “Burning Man” became Black Rock City at Fly Ranch in 1997 — a crucial year in Burning Man's legacy - when its citizens took ownership to the streets.
Caveat is convinced that Leaving No Trace lowers car insurance via the chakra-razing technology that NASA uses when astronauts need vision quests.
Land Art Generator Directors, Robert Ferry & Elizabeth Monoian, participated in a writing workshop that took place at NREL, organized by Arizona State University's Center for Science and the Imagination and the School for the Future of Innovation in Society.
Science fiction authors and artists from the Denver area collaborated with researchers, experts, and graduate students from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Arizona State University for a unique workshop that used science fiction as a lens to explore the technological, social, and cultural aspects of a transition to a clean energy future powered by renewables.
Held at NREL February 26–27, 2020, the Urban Electrification and the Future of Cities workshop brought together a cross-disciplinary group of experts from various areas of science, engineering, and the arts to create narratives of hope and visions for the future—inspiring art, short stories, and essays for a book titled The Weight of Light, Volume II.
The new book is a follow-on to the first volume published by Arizona State University after a similar workshop held last year. It will be available for free in digital formats later this year.
LAGI Directors Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry will give a lecture to students at the Academie van Bouwkunst.
Amsterdam
May 13, 2020
Learn More >
Commonfield Convening
LAGI Directors Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry joined our San Antonio Solar Mural artwork team on a panel discussion.
Discussion Title: LAND ART GENERATORS: REGENERATIVE DESIGN AND COMMUNITY HERITAGE
April 25, 2020
Learn More >
With Susana Mendez Segura (San Antonio, TX), Penelope Boyer (San Antonio, TX), Robert Ferry & Elizabeth Monoian (Seattle, WA), Stephen Lucke (San Antonio, TX)
This Report from the Field will introduce intersections of community heritage and regenerative design through a conversation between a Seattle-based founder of the Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI) and San Antonio-based community activists Penelope Boyer, Esperanza Center Arte es Vida Project Coordinator and Barrio Historian Susana Mendez Segura and Gardopia Gardens founder Stephen Lucke. LAGI provides a platform for artists, architects, landscape architects, and other creatives working with engineers and scientists to bring forward solutions for sustainable energy infrastructures that enhance the city as works of public art while cleanly producing renewable energy from wind, water and solar sources; Land Art Generators are public art that produce renewable energy. San Antonio is pioneering the production of one type of Land Art Generator: the world’s first Solar Mural installations—stand-alone, wall-mounted and roof-mounted models—each depicting emblems of local heritage through contemporary art and each producing power for specific neighborhood needs. The conversation will also touch on other local sustainable projects including the Esperanza Center’s MujerArtes Studio, the first commercial adobe structure to be built in San Antonio in over a century.
Follow this link for information about Return to the Source, New Energy Landscapes from the Land Art Generator.
Energy and the World
December 16, 2019
"In September this year, a number of interdisciplinary events were held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE), at the World Congress on Energy, to raise awareness of the energy sector among the general public and to think about the future of the industry globally but also in a friendly environment. One such official collaboration event was the Industrial Design Project Competition organized by the Land Art Generator (LAGI), which invited architects and artists from around the world to design urban objects that would at the same time serve as small renewable energy plants."
Read More >
Original in Latvian
"Šā gada septembrī Abū Dabī, Apvienotajos Arābu Emirātos (AAE), Pasaules Enerğijas kongresa ietvaros, norisinājās vairāki starpdisciplināri pasākumi, kuru mērķis bija popularizēt enerğētikas aktualitātes plašākā sabiedrībā un mudināt to domāt par nozares nākotni ne vien globālā mērogā, bet arī mūsdienīgas, klimatam un cilvēkam draudzīgas vides kontekstā. Viens no šādiem oficiālās sadarbības pasākumiem bija iniciatīvas Land Art Generator (LAGI) rīkotais industriālā dizaina projektu konkurss, kurā arhitekti un mākslinieki no visas pasaules tika aicināti izstrādāt pilsētvides objektus, kas vienlaikus kalpotu kā nelielas atjaunojamās enerğijas ražotnes."
Read More >
Denver Business Journal
Editor’s Notebook: When combined with public art, renewable energy is a beautiful thing
By Rebecca Troyer, Editor-in-chief, Denver Business Journal
Nov 22, 2019
What if we could combine renewable energy with public art to produce a profitable investment that doubles as a focal point for a city, even a tourist attraction?
It’s a big idea, but the Seattle-based nonprofit Land Art Generator Initiative, whose tag line is "Renewable Energy Can Be Beautiful," hopes to do just that. Cofounders Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry presented the results of their 10-year design-competition project at the Colorado Business Committee for the Arts forum on Art and Energy on Nov. 18 at Gensler in downtown Denver. Read More >
Please join the LAGI Directors Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2020 for the following programming:
Book Launch
Return to the Source, New Energy Landscapes by the Land Art Generator Initiative
DATE: January 14, 2020
TIME: 11:30
Lecture at Smart Cities Forum
Renewable Energy Power Plants as Works of Art and Design in Public Space
The role of art, culture, design, architecture, and landscape architecture is critical to a successful integration of sustainable infrastructures into the fabric of our cities. An inspirational look at the opportunity to create places of beauty, wonder, and education that use functional renewable energy technology as a medium for creative expression.
DATE: January 15, 2020
TIME: 3:10
Workshop at Youth 4 Sustainability (Y4S)
DATE: January 16, 2020
TIME: TBD
Panel Discussion at Youth 4 Sustainability (Y4S)
DATE: January 16, 2020
TIME: 11:30
Artists & Climate Change
The Future is Solar
By Joan Sullivan
October 24, 2019
If you haven’t seen the stunning results of the Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI)’s sixth international renewable energy design competition, announced last month at the 24th World Energy Congress in Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, you’re in for a treat. Read More >
Architect Magazine
This Week in Tech: Shortlisted Proposals for Energy-Harvesting Art
By Katharine Keane
July 19, 2019
From 300 submissions, 28 designs were shortlisted for the sixth Land Art Generator Initiative design competition, hosted by Seattle-based nonprofit Land Art Generator (LGA). Challenged to create a large-scale installation capable of producing clean energy for Masdar City, Abu Dhabi, teams of landscape architects, engineers, artists, and designers conceptualized innovative, often whimsical, installations that would create "a clean energy landscape for a post-carbon world," according to the organization.
Read More >
SMITHSONIAN.COM
These Wild Sculptures Could Bring Sustainable Energy to the Desert
By Emily Matchar
September 10, 2019
The average high in Abu Dhabi this time of year is nearly 105 degrees. That’s why much of life in the capital of the United Arab Emirates revolves around indoor shopping malls, with their cocoons of artificially chilled air. But imagine walking through an outdoor park beneath a shaded canopy, a light mist cooling your skin. As day turns to night, the light passing through the canopy’s geometric opening makes you feel like you’re strolling beneath the Milky Way.
This canopy concept, designed by New York architect Sunggi Park, is called Starlit Stratus. It’s the winner of a contest sponsored by the Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI), an organization looking to show that “renewable energy can be beautiful.” Since 2010, LAGI has been hosting a biannual contest for energy-generating public art. Previous contests have been held in places as far afield as Copenhagen, Santa Monica and Melbourne.
Read More >
Landscape Australia
2019 Land Art Generator Initiative design competition winners announced
September 11, 2019
New York-based architect Sunggi Park has been named winner of the sixth Land Art Generator (LAGI) international ideas competition for large-scale works of public art that also produce clean energy.
The LAGI competition invites artists, architects and creative minds from around the world to submit proposals for a specific site. Masdar City, Abu Dhabi was the site of the 2019 LAGI competition, following on from Melbourne’s St Kilda Triangle in 2018.
Read More >
24th World Energy Congress
Abu Dhabi, UAE
Tuesday, September 10
Time: 11:45
Immediately following the discussion we will announce the winners of LAGI 2019 Abu Dhabi!
Panel Discussion
The voice of cities: designing an energy smart future
The way cities are designed today is shaping the future of energy. Smart city planning and urban development have a significant impact on transport needs. Building design, smart appliances and smart grid have great potential in improving the energy and carbon footprint of our buildings. An integrated and smart design approach will determine the energy consumption of our cities years from now. Learn from leading cities, from old to new, big to small, that are driving solutions in energy, resource and resilience challenges.
Moderator
H.E. Eng. Fatima Alfoora Alshamsi
Assistant Undersecretary for Electricity, Water and Future Energy, Ministry of Energy and Industry
CEO, World Energy Congress Organising Committee
Speakers
Ahmed Aboutaleb, Mayor of Rotterdam
Elizabeth Monoian, Founding Director, LAGI - Land Art Generator Initiative
Ian Gardner, Director, ARUP
Kim Yin Wong, Group CEO, Singapore Power
LAGI 2020 and The Future of Fly Ranch
Burners Without Borders
Thursday August 29, 2019
2:00 pm at Burners Without Borders (Burning Man Event, 7:15/Esplanade)
Join us in a panel discussion about LAGI 2020 Fly Ranch.
Speakers include:
Elizabeth Monoian. Founding co-director of LAGI.
Lawrence Blume. Real estate and media entrepreneur, member of the Director’s Guild of America.
Stacey Black (aka Keeper). Dean and Teacher at Gerlach K12, Washoe County School District Elementary School Teacher of the Year, BRC Ranger, Gerlach Resident.
Will Rogers. Burning Man cultural founder, holder and steward of the Fly Ranch vision for 20 years, Gerlach resident.
CBCA Arts + Energy Forum
Date: November 18, 2019
Time: 5:00–8:00 p.m.
Location: Gensler, 1225 17th Street #150, Denver, Colorado
Join CBCA for a dynamic Arts + Energy Forum that will focus on how creativity and ingenuity can fuel the future of our energy industry, including traditional and renewable energy.
This interactive dialogue will be led by the Land Art Generator Initiative. Based in Seattle, Land Art Generator provides a platform for global artists, architects, landscape architects, and other creatives working with engineers and scientists to bring forward solutions for sustainable energy infrastructures that enhance the city as works of public art while cleanly powering thousands of homes.
CBCA’s Arts + Industry Forum Series offers engaging discovery sessions that bring together experts and stakeholders from a variety of arts and business sectors. By fostering a community dialogue, these forums highlight timely issues, inspire action and raises awareness on how arts interact and influence specific industries. 2019 Arts + Industry Forums include Arts + Healthcare, Arts + Outdoor Recreation, Arts + Impact Investing and Arts + Energy.
LAGI Director, Elizabeth Monoian, will be honored with an award from the International Film Festival of the Canary Islands on May 25th, 2019.
NESSBE2019: Equity of Place — Social justice in the built environment
Yale University
March 8, 2019
LAGI Directors, Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry, presented on the topic of "Transformative Community Engagement."
NESSBE (Northeast Summit for a Sustainable Built Environment) is a biennial northeast regional summit meant to include a larger community of building professionals, owners, academics, policymakers and advocates in a conversation about sustainability in the built environment. The theme of the second NESSBE is Equity of Place: Social Justice in the Built Environment. The focus areas are material health and social justice, climate justice and conservation, resilience, community engagement, and affordable housing.
We were honored to be invited to speak about the Land Art Generator Initiative at the 2019 Navajo Nation Sustainability Symposium, which was held from 29 April - 1 May in Flagstaff, Arizona. The symposium was held for the first time in 2019. Attendees worked together to forge "a new path while revitalizing Diné lifeways for a sustainable transition and future for the Navajo Nation."
3RD ANNUAL K-12 STUDENT PROJECT CONFERENCE — SEEDS OF CHANGE: IGNITING STUDENT ACTION FOR SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITIES.
Chatham University
March 4, 2019
LAGI Directors, Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry were delighted to act as moderators for the Seeds of Change Conference at Chatham University — engaging with youth on their proposals for the Seeds of Change Challenge.
Seeds of Change Challenge
"We challenge teams to use the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as the framework for your project. At the conference, we will award the three teams that incorporate these goals into their project in the most meaningful way up to $300 per team to help their project come to life.
How many of the below SDGs can you incorporate, in a meaningful way, into your project idea to transform your community? The conference moderators and judges will use the 17 SDGs below as a rubric as they listen to project presentations both before and during the conference."
Beach Front Silent Disco by Buck Walsky (re-creation of his Burning Man art installation on the front lawn of the Anchorage Museum). Photo from the Anchorage Museum of Art website.
From the Anchorage Museum's website:
SEED Lab puts creative practitioners in service of and in partnership with the community in proposing solutions to challenges facing Northern places, people and climate and in establishing the North as a catalyst for change.
SEED Lab programs and activities focus on creative and critical thinking as a way for the North to be aspirational and solutions-based and to connect people and ideas in ways that have not occurred before—in a radical, relevant and transformative ways. SEED Lab projects are guided by cohorts, which are cross-disciplinary and include creative practice professionals, community change agents (residents), and other experts.
Anchorage is host to some of the key issues facing the globe. As a Northern community, we are transforming environmental, social and economic challenges into opportunities that potentially can be shared with communities around the world.
Geography 2050: Powering Our Future Planet
Plenary Session: Social Dimensions of Energy Access
November 16, 2018
Moderator: Dr. Wesley Herche, Associate Director of Research, Global Security Initiative, Arizona State University
Speakers: Ms. Bidtah Becker, Executive Director, Navajo Nation Division of Natural Resources
Mr. Peter Fiekowsky, Founder, Foundation for Climate Restoration
Ms. Elizabeth Monoian & Mr. Robert Ferry, Founding Directors, Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI)
A conversation about the intersection of renewable energy and design in public space with Marcus Smith, the host of Constant Wonder, a BYU Radio Program. The show originally aired on November 16, 2018.
La Stampa
Le strutture più incredibili hanno preso forma alla Land Art Generator Initiative, concorso di idee tenutosi a Melbourne
November 14, 2018
Da poco conclusa, l’edizione 2018 della Land Art Generator Initiative, ha acceso i riflettori sul tema dell’energia pulita e su come generarla arricchendo le città. Un evento biennale, che si è tenuto a Melbourne, e ha visto la partecipazione di creativi e tecnici di tutto il mondo. LAGI è oggi uno degli eventi dedicati alla sostenibilità più importanti al mondo. Un concorso di idee che unisce arte, architettura, design, ecologia e urbanistica.
Bustler
The winning 2018 LAGI Melbourne public art proposals
By Justine Testado
October 11, 2018
Taking place in cities worldwide, LAGI competitions seek inventive, large-scale works of public art that produce clean energy. In this latest edition, entrants had to design for St. Kilda Triangle in Melbourne. Although there is no guarantee that any of the projects will be realized, “public support may lead to their incorporation as a part of the larger co-design process currently underway for the St. Kilda Triangle site”, LAGI says.
ArchitectureAU
NH Architecture team wins the 2018 Land Art Generator design competition
October 11, 2018
Melbourne practice NH Architecture has been named winner of the fifth biennial Land Art Generator (LAGI) international ideas competition for large-scale works of public art that also produce clean energy.
a as architecture
WINNERS OF 2018 LAND ART GENERATOR DESIGN COMPETITION FOR MELBOURNE
By Marco Rinaldi
October 18, 2018
The first-place winning design is a perfect example of this new socially-relevant approach to clean energy infrastructure. Light Up by NH Architecture incorporates solar, wind, and microbial fuel cell technologies to produce 2,220 MWh of clean energy annually for St Kilda in the City of Port Phillip, or enough to power nearly 500 Australian homes.
INTERVIEW:
Jodie & Martin on the St Kilda Foreshore Land Art Generator Project Winning Entry
November 5, 2018
David & Sue talk to Jodie from the Land Art Generator Initiative & Martin from NH Architecture about the St Kilda foreshore triangle design which was the winner of this year’s Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI) Competition. LAGI (Land Art Generator Initiative) 2018 was free and open to anyone around the world, and invited artists, architects, designers, landscape architects, scientists, engineers, and others to submit proposals for large-scale and site-specific public art installations that generate clean energy for a site in Melbourne. You can find out more on the LAGI website. The competition was supported by both the City of Port Phillip and the Victorian State Government.
Inhabitat
Clean energy-producing Light Up wins the 2018 LAGI competition in Melbourne
By Lucy Wang
October 18, 2018
Melbourne-based NH Architecture and Seattle architectural practice Olson Kundig placed first and second respectively in the 2018 Land Art Generator Initiative design competition in Melbourne, Australia. Sponsored by the State of Victoria’s Renewable Energy Action Plan with clean energy targets of 25 percent by 2020, the international competition sought large-scale works of public art that generate renewable energy in visible ways for St. Kilda Triangle in the City of Port Phillip. NH Architecture’s winning proposal, named ‘Light Up,’ harnesses solar, wind and microbial fuel cell technologies to produce 2,200 MWh of energy annually — enough to power nearly 500 homes.
Archinect
The winning 2018 LAGI Melbourne public art proposals
By Justine Testado
October 11, 2018
Taking place in cities worldwide, LAGI competitions seek inventive, large-scale works of public art that produce clean energy. In this latest edition, entrants had to design for St. Kilda Triangle in Melbourne. Although there is no guarantee that any of the projects will be realized, “public support may lead to their incorporation as a part of the larger co-design process currently underway for the St. Kilda Triangle site”, LAGI says.
Landscape Australia
NH Architecture team wins the 2018 Land Art Generator design competition
October 11, 2018
Elizabeth Monoian and Robert Ferry, the founders of the competition, said the proposal was a perfect example of a positive vision for a sustainable future.
“LAGI 2018 is a window onto a world that has moved beyond fossil fuels – a world that celebrates living in harmony with nature by creating engaging public places that artfully integrate renewable energy and energy storage within the urban landscape,” they said in a statement.
Green Magazine
Winner of 2018 Land Art Generator design competition announced
October 11, 2018
Today the Land Art Generator awarded a local Melbourne team first prize in their fifth biennial design competition. Sponsored by the State of Victoria as part of their Renewable Energy Action Plan, the competition calls for large-scale works of public art that also produce clean energy. The Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI) combines community-scale renewable energy infrastructure with public art and creative placemaking for the design of important public places.
ZME Science
Melbourne solar powered canopy that doubles as work of art wins 2018 Land Art Generator Initiative
By Tibu Puiu
October 11, 2018
Every two years, the Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI) celebrates the most inspiring designs that integrate renewable-energy production within an urban setting. For elegantly blending art and energy generation, Light Up — a project designed for Melbourne, Australia that incorporates solar, wind, and microbial fuel cell technologies to produce 2,220 MWh of clean energy annually — was awarded the first prize.
You wouldn’t want to take your family to a picnic near a coal-fired power plant, but who could say no to a stroll down Light Up — NH Architecture’s idea for turning Melbourne’s St. Kilda Triangle, the beachside block home to the historic Palais Theatre, into a power plant and work of art both.
Artists & Climate Change
Buildings Made of Sky
By Joan Sullivan
October 18, 2018
For 10 years, LAGI’s free and open call international design competition, held every two years in a different city, has mobilized collaborative interdisciplinary creative talent across the globe, resulting in nearly 1,000 innovative proposals from more than 60 countries. Available online, this collection of proposals is an invaluable resource for urban planners looking for inspiration: how to integrate distributed renewable energy infrastructure into urban settings where the public can interact with and reflect upon the third energy revolution. More than any other organization, LAGI is helping us all to visualize – to imagine – what our post-carbon future will look like. And it promises to be beautiful.
Cosmos Magazine
Power plants as public art
By Nancy Langham-Hooper
October 11, 2018
Is this the aesthetic face of our energy future?
The sparkling canopy draped along the beach from the roof of the Palais Theatre in Melbourne, Australia, won local firm NH Architecture first prize in the Australian leg of this year’s Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI).
Called Light Up, the design incorporates solar, wind, tensional energy and microbial fuel cell technologies that could generate 2220 megawatt-hours per year, enough to power 500 homes. Old car batteries repurposed as handrails along the paths could store energy for 24/7 access.
Inhabitat
Olson Kundig solar sail proposal could power up to 200 Melbourne homes with clean energy
By Lucy Wang
October 10, 2018
Acclaimed architecture practice Olson Kundig is best known for its spectacular residential works in the Pacific Northwest, yet the Seattle-based firm has embarked on somewhat new ground in its recent submission to the 2018 Land Art Generator Initiative (LAGI) competition. Held this year in Melbourne, the international contest has invited designers to create a large-scale and site-specific public artwork that could generate clean energy for the city. In response, Olson Kundig developed Night and Day, a massive solar sail concept designed to produce 1,000 MWh of clean energy through a combination of solar energy and a hydro battery.
SMITHSONIAN.COM
This Golden Canopy Could Power 500 Homes
By Emily Matchar
October 11, 2018
In the rendering, the structure looks like an enormous golden wave, spilling from the Upper Esplanade of Melbourne’s St Kilda Beach, crossing a busy road and crashing onto the sand. In reality, it would be a canopy of nearly 9,000 flexible photovoltaic panels designed to connect a shopping and entertainment district with the beach while generating renewable energy.
Atlas Obscura
This Award-Winning Australian Land Art Is Designed to Power 900 Homes
By Evan Nicole Brown
October 12, 2018
ON OCTOBER 11, THE LAND Art Generator Initiative (LAGI), a biannual sustainable land art competition, announced its first-place winner for 2018. The victorious design is an energy-laced yellow canopy draped like a translucent racetrack across the sky, and intended to hover over a popular park in one of Melbourne’s major urban centers.
