Dezeen Magazine

Scent Pavilion by Alan Lu

Here's another student project, this time a pavilion designed by Alan Lu at the University of California.

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The conceptual pavilion was designed for a fictional perfume brand and would be situated at the Imperial Palace in Kyoto, Japan.

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The information below is from Alan Lu:

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I am a forth year (last year) architecture student at University of California, Berkeley in the U.S. The work was done as part of a comprehensive graduate studio led by Peter Testa of Testa & Weiser, completed this fall (2008).

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The brief for this project is a pavilion structure situated in the Imperial Palace in Kyoto, Japan for a fictitious perfume production company. The aim of the project was to explore the emergent structural morphology of rheological materials that could be applied to a series of nested bioclimatic envelopes in the form of a visitor pavilion. It serves as a departure point for research into membrane systems that are porous, microporous, layered, bubbled and/or foamed surfaces.

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As an interface between the public and scent fabrication, the scent pavilion emerged from fluid simulations and branching networks. The project then evolved into a formal separation of scent synthesis and commercial sales within the pavilion. Operational envelopes composed of a double layered performative membranes create controlled climates while a fiber glass structure both stabilizes the structure and disperses scents to specific chambers, giving the public access to the art of scent making.

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The program for the pavilion called for a series of small compact experimental growing chambers for plant materials from two distinct climate zones. Other required spaces included chambers for scent customization, a dark and thermally stable storage area, seating, display, and sales area. The separation of enclosed and open were thus defined by the material properties of the skin.

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In addition to explorations in computational material forms and rheological materials, a second facet of the project dealt with thermodynamics - the consideration of form as responsive to the flow of energy and matter.

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As a result, interior air quality and light modulation were under careful development and analysis to allow for distinct environmental conditions. There were also considerations about structural performance based on avoiding stress concentrations.

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