unitydesign, starburstar and asa: necklace 'exploratory science museum of unicamp'

‘necklace’ by unitydesign, starburstar and asa all images courtesy unitydesign

japanese unitydesign, starburstar and asa entered a proposal in response to the international public competition, to design an ‘exploratory science museum of unicamp’ located on the campus of the campinas university in brazil.

their proposal for this project was based on the concept of the necklace. the design is comprised of the porous loop or ‘chain’ and had discrete volumes which represented the ‘jewelry’ or ‘stones’ of the necklace. the double bricked porous loop wall formed the exterior circulation space between exhibition spaces.

the ‘chain’ concept of the necklace and loop allowed visitors to walk freely around the museum. the loop, or the spine of the architecture, is not controlled by electrical energy – air conditioning, ventilation, illumination, dehumidification etc, but rather simple mechanisms controlled by the environmentand managed by the people. this includes the flow of natural light or wind, skillfully distributed by the curved porous walls. the brick walls are made using the soil located on site.

‘necklace’each volume had the necessary spec functions and requirements including but not limited to high ceilings, open views, continuity to exteriors, and open spaces. by minimizing the amount of these high spec spaces, our proposal reduced the initial and running costs of the building, and also the environmental impact of machines.