Students have Rundle Mall covered
by Vincent Ciccarello
A plan to cover the length of Rundle Mall with a series of canopies recently earned two UniSA students high praise from judges of a prestigious international architecture competition.
Their dynamic design creates a constantly evolving atmosphere using digital technology to alter images projected on the canopies, depending on changes in natural light and the number of people who walk beneath them.
Fourth-year students at UniSA’s Louis Laybourne Smith School of Architecture and Design, Dan Galut and Colin Yin Wang Ng came up with the concept, ephemeral, as their entry in the International Velux Award 2006 for Students of Architecture.
Developed with architecture program director Stephen Ward, ephemeral was selected from 557 entries received from 225 architecture schools in 53 countries. The awards were presented last month at a glittering ceremony in Frank Gehry’s iconic Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain.
Galut says the pair settled on Rundle Mall as the site of their project in response to the competition’s theme, Light of Tomorrow, which called for daylight to be treated as a central design issue.
"We decided to explore how light could be used in Rundle Mall to create interactivity and different atmospheric qualities," he says.
Adelaide’s famous paved pedestrian strip has recently come under fire for being bland and lifeless.
"I think we need something to liven it up," Galut says, adding that the images projected on the canopies could be adapted to specific seasons, festivities or events.
Galut says while there are no immediate plans for the ephemeral concept, he and Yin Wang Ng would welcome the opportunity to present the concept to the Adelaide City Council for consideration.
"It’s an interesting concept and something that would contribute to the city’s vitality," he says.
Global building products company Velux provided an all expenses paid trip for Galut to travel to Bilbao to receive a glass trophy and $840 in prize money.