artists transform brutalist pavilion in the UK with abstract moving projections 

with a light installation entitled ‘apollo 50’, holger mader and heike wiermann (mader wiermann) have transformed the existing ‘apollo’ brutalist pavilion in the UK city of county durham. the project sees an incredible display of lines and colors projected across the architectural form and has been envisioned by the duo to celebrate 50 years since the structure’s erection and the space programme which inspired it’s name.

horizontal and vertical projections overlap

all images © harry ricardo

originally designed by british artist and architect victor pasmore in 1969, the structure has become one of the UK’s most famous and controversial brutalist structures. situated within the ‘sunny blunts’ housing estate, the pavilion spans across a small lake, providing a pedestrian link between the two halves of the estate. mader wiermann‘s installation highlights the combination of horizontal and vertical plains with striking lines and bold colors that move across the architectural form.

vertical and horizontal lines create a ‘moiré’ effect

in addition to commemorating the structure itself, the moving projections aim to evoke the apollo 11 moon landing space flight, which marks its 50th anniversary this year and gave the pavilion its name. the installation also reflects the monochrome geometric aesthetic associated with the bauhaus school of art, which is also celebrating its centenary this year. this special event brings victor pasmore’s paintings to life and temporarily transforms the pavilion into a flowing structure of shape-shifting patterns.

virtual light creates shadows on the pavilion

additive color mixing

vertical abstract lines stretch across the pavilion

the lines tip across the form of the pavilion

lines form into circles

the lines expand and become an abstract moon

negative spheres superimpose the moon

3D model of the pavilion

UV map – the content for the computer

a photo of the apollo pavilion from the 70’s

project info:

project name: ‘apollo 50’

project location: the sunny blunts estate, peterlee, county durham, the U.K

artists: holger mader, heike wiermann

commissioned by: durham county council as part of durham’s year of culture

sound design: thomas a. troge

production: artichoke

technic and UV mapping: QED productions

photography: harry ricardo

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.