Cover Up / Visiondivision

Our friends at Visiondivision passed along their Cover Up project which is part of a bigger commission to improve several power plants for an energy company.  The firm created a storage facility for several heating containers that could be quickly outsourced and serve as back-up power should the city experienced a black-out.  Working in an industrial area where the company was used to break ins and vandalism, the firm designed a “good looking, roofless, and flexible-as-an-anaconda building.”  Good looking in the sense that this storage facility could better the rough surroundings; roofless due to the fact that the large containers needed to be transported with a special crane truck; and flexible since the need for additional containers in the future should also be considered.

More about the project after the break.

Made from perforated steel plates, the part of the façade facing the street is slightly higher and rigid, functioning as a wall to the premise.  Inside, the wall systems are not as high to allow the walls to be easily moved to accommodate the company’s needs.  ”We made three modes with different area sizes with the help of pre-made holes in the ground which the walls on the flexible part of the structure could switch between when necessary,” explained the architects.

The inner part of the structure is perforated in a mathematical and repetitive fashion to minimize wind loads and permit views into the storage without experiencing the clutter.

A decorative motif covers the exterior, yet the “artwork” is more than what meets the eye.  Various surveillance cameras, a rainwater collector, and even water taps to clean the facade are incorporated into the art.  For example, the main door is disguised in a forest, with the keyhole in one eye of a bear, while canisters of air fresheners hide amidst the butterflies and flowers.

During the day, the façade will appear neat, white and clean.   Yet, as soon as the sun sets, “selected parts of the motive will transform the building into a huge glowing painting, giving the passing cars on the nearby highway some inspiration along the way and the pedestrians a wondrous  object in the anonymous and harsh industrial surroundings.”