An interactive environment that leverages experiential memory.
Laphant was commissioned by Uber to create a dynamic experiential space for arts and music festivals. The objective for the project was to develop an interactive space which would generate an immersive spatial journey and provide an exciting, artistic means to cultivate the foundational elements of Uber’s new brand identity.
The project was created within the ethos of Uber’s new global brand redevelopment with Wolff Olins and we wanted this project to showcase the new identity of the company.
Comprised of a string of 72 freestanding forms which ripple and form multiple passageways, the structure is composed of a modular system of 9 repeating units which sequentially change in roof angle. The project fosters a sense of exploration through an unexpected sequence of views, a diverse collection of walking paths, an interactive lighting scheme, and embedded beamforming audio of live performance streams. Lateral openings allow for festival goers to weave between the design or walk through a shifting corridor via the central portals of each element and the airspace between. Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival was used as a testing ground for this new project typology.
To make a space at this scale, complexity, and with the resistance to significant wind loads for an event space we proposed an accommodating structural system and material palette. High performance and lightweight trusses are anchored to the ground via helical piles, which limit the need for the time consuming and expensive production of concrete piles. Porous engineered mesh is stretched across the structural skeleton of each element and reduces wind loads. A pure and crystalline aesthetic using white forms contrasts with the organic terrain and endless green lawn that defines the festival landscape.