ronan + erwan bouroullec present quiet motion for BMW i

ronan + erwan bouroullec present quiet motion for BMW iportrait © designboom

developed in collaboration with ronan and erwan bouroullec, BMW i presents ‘quiet motion’ during milan design week 2013. reminiscent of a carousel, the installation rotates slowly and silently – an allegorical interpretation of movement and contemplation as well as of the forward-looking vehicle design of the german car company. proposing to interpret the question of the interior environment of a car with a more domestic approach, the intervention is comprised of different levels of slowly turning platforms partially made of cork.

electric motors beneath the flooring create the gentle rotation of the harmoniously configured platforms, where a column of rigid yet extremely lightweight carbon connects the modules and the fiberglass roofs above them. as with the bodywork, carbon for the lightweight design is used; with the outer-ceiling coated in paint used for the BMW i exterior, and the lining on the underside made from sustainable wool yarn used in the future roof lining. the seating area is also wrapped in the same soft leather as the ‘i’ cockpit, being treated using vegetable tannins. 

‘quiet motion’ lounge installation by ronan and erwan bouroullec for BMW ivideo © designboom

‘quiet motion’ lounge installation by ronan and erwan bouroullec for BMW iimage courtesy BMW group

curtains of fabric strips around the platforms materialize a transparent frontier between the interior of platforms and the surrounding environment, creating a subtle comfort zone. ‘we have created a poetic abstraction of modern nomadism by bringing motion into harmony with its surroundings and rendering visible the kind of view you could get through a car window,’ says erwan bouroullec.

the installation rotates slowly and silently – an allegorical interpretation of movement and contemplationimage © designboom

electric motors beneath the flooring create the gentle rotation of the harmoniously configured platformsimage © designboom

the intervention is comprised of different levels of slowly turning platforms partially made of corkimage © designboom

technology of the textile strips used in the ‘clouds’ modular room divider system for kvadratimage © designboom

aim lamp by ronan and erwan bouroullec for flos, used for adjustable overhead spotlightimage © designboom

cork contrasting the sustainable wool yarn used for the future BMW i roof liningimage © designboom

first set-upimage courtesy BMW group

modelimage courtesy BMW group

research model, amusement parkimage courtesy BMW group

modelimage courtesy BMW group

amusement park sketchesimage courtesy BMW group

BMW i3image courtesy BMW group

BMW i8image courtesy BMW group