Dezeen Magazine

Nissan Y150 Dream Front pavilionby Torafu Architects

Tokyo practice Torafu Architects have created a pavilion filled with inflated, plastic balls inside a warehouse on the Shinko Pier in Yokohama, Japan.

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The project was conceived for automotive company Nissan to display their PIVO 2 electric car.

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The sixteen bubbles measuring between 4.5 and 10 metres in diameter have images projected onto their surfaces and contain pieces of paper with messages from visitors written on them.

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The car is displayed in a central enclosure that is furnished with seating made of concertinaed paper.

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Photographs are by Daici Ano except where stated otherwise.

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Here's some more information from Torafu Architects:

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Y150 NISSAN PAVILION

Using Air as a Material

The NISSAN Y150 Dream Front pavilion was designed as part of the EXPO Y150 initiative commemorating the 150th Anniversary of the Opening of the Port of Yokohama.

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Located in a warehouse on the Shinko Pier, the Nissan Motors PR project spanned two areas focusing on the theme of children and the environment; “Word Park” and “Pivo Labo”.

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“Word Park” is a large exhibition space that houses 16 giant bubbles ranging from 4.5m to 10m in diameter where 1 million messages are expected to fill them; whirling and dancing around as blue leaves.

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These bubbles give the surrounding space its physicality, inviting visitors to playfully navigate through it.

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Incidentally, the spheres touch at certain points, supporting each other and creating a feeling of tension.

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Virtual images projected on the 0.5mm thin membranes come to life on the round surfaces giving them the aspect of solidity.

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Natural light coming down from skylights passes through layers of transparent and opaque membranes; casting and distorting shadows of visitors moving between the spheres and giving the whole space its tone and atmosphere in a hazy mix of projected shapes and shapeless forms.

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We sought to give the pavilion an ever-changing enchanted atmosphere with its many reflected images and to eliminate the tributary relationship between ground and figure represented here by the open space and spheres respectively.

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“Pivo Labo” features the Nissan PIVO 2 electric car and a video showcase of the company’s environmental practices. (Above image by Alessio Guarino)

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Kids’ seats in “Pivo Labo” are made of recycled paper honeycombs echoing the concept used in “Word Park” where a compact object filled with air populates a larger area. (Above image by Torafu Architects.)

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Stemming from Nissan’s vision for a future with clean air, our concept aimed to create a generous form of expression by allowing light and signs of presence to permeate the surroundings and by using air as a material itself.

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Above two images by Torafu Architects.

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Above image by Torafu Architects.

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