elevated Inspired

Elevated Brood by Paul D Nicholls is a masterful display of the application of nature inspired architecture. The structure is situated in London’s Hyde Park, on the bank of Serpentine Lake. Its combination of steel and polycarbonate support elements creates a striking architectural imagery.

The project was shortlisted in the 2007 Riba Student Awards. The Brood is the attachment, shelter and protection of a mother’s young. The Paper Nautilus was the main inspiration for the aquarium. It imitates the way it hangs its eggs from the strongest part of its shell by the placement of exhibit displays. The elevated, shell-like structure is a “brood” for the display chandeliers that can be lowered independently via remote control by the visitor. The maintenance of the fish decreases the further out onto the water they are, inside the linear repetition of the chandeliers themselves, coupled with the solar lilies, the further structures become almost completely independent. Elevated Brood also encourages a graceful use of water by forming a strong relationship with the Serpentine Lake.

From a strictly architectural perspective the presentation is an excellent example of a collective set of drawings and illustrations made in a way to reinforce the ideas and thoughts behind the project itself.

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