INSIDE OUT is the concept of a media facade for the library of the Bauhaus University in Weimar, created by the young collective 5Elements from Bremen, Germany. Initially, it answered the open call category 'call for fiction' of the projection mapping festival 'Genius Loci Weimar' in August 2018. Now, independently from the festival context, it remains as a concept suitable for any library.

„Inside Out“ is a concept for a media facade developed in order to enhance the building of the Bauhaus University Library in Weimar, Germany, in the context of the projection mapping festival ’Genius Loci Weimar’, 2018. It was thought of as a metaphor of the physical and psychological processes that take place inside the library, such as the selection of a book from a shelf or the thinking process of a student while reading an article. These processes were taken from the inside of the building and placed on the outside architecture. In order to keep it from being too distractive or too invasive towards the surrounding urban space, it was designed to have pleasant and softly animated visuals. This enhances the building and increases curiosity about it while not unnecessarily distracting pedestrians. Although during the festival it was simulated with the technique of projection mapping, the installation is realizable by the use of smart LED lights. Based on the facade windows, a geometrical grid was developed, allowing to generate visual content that fits exactly to the building ’s measurements. Inspired by Bauhaus design, typographies and patterns were created, allowing the library to talk. This 'talking', displayed in the glass facade, is real-time generated by an algorithm; each user request to the databases of the library prompts the recombination of book titles, producing an imaginary title. These titles are animated on the glass facade and transferred to the side facade of the building where they adopt a new visual style, illustrating the development of knowledge. 5Elements is a young creative collective of art and design, which basically formed for this project only.

https://vimeo.com/288877558

Details

Building or project owner : Library of the Bauhaus University, Weimar, Germany

Project artist/ concept/ design/ planning : 5Elements: Ana Romão, Eike Buff, José David Buendía, Farnaz Khosh-Sirat, Lukas Neumann

Light design : 5Elements

Display content/ visuals/ showreel : 5Elements

Project co-ordination : 5Elements

Interaction design/ programming : 5Elements

Project sponsor/ support : MXWendler Weimar

Descriptions

Facade type and geometry (structure) : Parallelepiped shape main building with front glass/ window facade and plain concrete side facade towards the street.

Kind of light creation : Using projection mapping to simulate smart LED stripes and mesh.

Urban situation : close to city center, main traffic road nearby, students and university area address: Steubenstraße 6/8, 99423 Weimar, Germany

Participatory architecture & urban interaction

Mediacredits

Oliver Blum

Oliver Blum

Oliver Blum

5Elements

5Elements

5Elements