The nature of society (relationships between people and political and economic structures) is significantly altered by the impact of new technologies, to a certain extent people's lives are changed to serve technology. Architecture is no different.
«Recently, there has been a shift in attention in architecture towards the articulation of topological surfaces in the forms of design representation. (...)
Mark Taylor, in his book "Hiding", states that everything comes down to skin and bone. Skin is not simply a surface that covers our inner organism. On the contrary, the skin is an organ in itself, made up of different layers interwoven with each other. (...)
In fact, you have to be careful and critical enough to be able to separate the conceptual level on the one hand and the formal level resulting from the use of certain operational tools on the other when reading how the project works.»
- Alicia Imperiale
In this age when everyone craves the latest technology. We've gone from façades that reached their peak through materiality and ornament to modern skyscrapers encased in glass and the desire to create something dynamic that breaks away from the static of the past.
This cutting-edge technology simply became a means of achieving something never thought of before. The possibility of developing architecture that responded to environmental stimuli combined with the best of design. This led to Kinetic Facades, which change dynamically, transforming buildings from static monoliths into moving surfaces.
In an architecture that prioritises functionality, these façades have helped solve the eternal problem of sustainability, being more environmentally friendly and energy efficient. What more purpose does architecture have than to respond to the problems imposed on it, be it comfort, spatiality, function or sustainability?
Among several examples, such as the Kiefer Technic Showroom by Ernst Giselbrecht + Partner, the Brisbane Domestic Terminal Carpark and the Pixel Building in Melbourne, the Al Bahar Towers by Aedas Architects in Abu Dhabi stands out for me.
In a country where temperatures can reach 45ºC, they have created two towers that aim to minimise this problem through technology. The façades of these buildings automatically adjust according to the sunlight, i.e. biomimicry. The architects were inspired by nature, how flowers respond to the sun and how our pupils adjust to the light. They also looked to the past, respecting cultural heritage, and made these façades in the likeness of the traditional carved latticework used in Islamic architecture, which favours air circulation and keeps the temperature cooler. The umbrella-shaped panels of this façade react to the movement of the sun in a combination of origami-inspired design and technology, protecting users from heat and glare, reducing the need for air conditioning by 50 per cent and artificial light, making the building energy efficient.
