Studio Etain Ho

Model sizes : 70(w) x 36(d) x 20(h) cm
Model materials: 3d printed ABS parts, CNC oak base, magnets, brass rods

 

The unsettling pavilion aims to challenge the perception of what a structural element can be in architecture. Here, the repulsion between two magnets is used to support the roof petals and to create experiential spaces in between the petals and the undulating landscape. The field of thin rods which seem to be the columns at first glance are indeed just holding the roof petals in place and they take no load. While columns are often considered as the most solid and  heaviest load-bearing structure of a piece of architecture, now, inside The unsettling pavilion, people can actually walk through the “invisible columns” where repulsive forces of magnets are holding up the roof.