pneuhaus’ multifaceted inflatable design is composed of 109 pinhole cameras

in its latest project, pneuhaus, a providence-based design collective working to expand the role of pneumatics in the built environment, has created a unique design for a compound camera. the structure is comprised of 109 inflated cells with opaque fabric on the outside and translucent fabric on the inside. when inflated, a single magnifying lens on the outside of each cell projects an inverted image onto the translucent interior fabric.

the curvature of the dome provides slightly different angles for each cell
all images © cassidy batiz

influenced by the structure of an insects eye, pneuhaus‘ piece allows visitors to experience multiple angles of perspective on a single continuous surface. similar to how our brains stitch together the two images coming in from our eye’s into one image, an insect’s brain has to convert hundreds of images into one. this allows them to have a wider range of vision. 

visitors observe the clouds pass overhead

the compound camera allows you to enter into this space of raw visual information and physically engage with it. the structure’s flexible fabric allows visitors to push and distort the projected images, playing with the fundamental properties of light, optics, and vision in a tangible way.

external view of the structure

each image is inverted by the lens on the outside

109 cells is about the frequency of a worker ant’s eye

the sun exposed on multiple cells

details of the structure

by pressing on the fabric, you can focus the projected image at different depths

details of the inverted image

the structure’s entrance

the piece was commissioned by the pawtucket arts festival

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.