12 Creative Architectural Art

When does a building transform from a shell into a work of art within itself? Can artists improve even beautiful architectural wonders, turning them into something more creative and meaningful?

Some architectural art installations are done out of necessity because the work is simply too large to be contained. Others use the building to make a political statement, to give value to an abandoned space or simply for the pure joy of it. These 12 installations encompass the whole spectrum, making use of everything from the Sydney Opera House to a decaying factory.

Wrapped Reichstag by Christo

In 1995, artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude wrapped the entire Reichstag building in Germany with more than 100,000 meters of fireproof polypropylene fabric. The building, which housed the first parliament of the German Empire until it was severely damaged in 1933, had stood in ruins for decades and became a symbol for a divided Germany. The ‘Wrapped Reichstag’ installation was only up for two weeks, but drew five million visitors. Onlookers described it alternately as ethereal and graceful during the day, but ominous at night.

Lighting Up the Sydney Opera House

It may seem ironic, and even a bit preposterous, to use a large amount of energy to light up the Sydney Opera House as a statement about global warming. But musical producer Brian Eno’s goal was to turn artists into advocates for action against climate change when he curated the Luminous Festival, a sound and light festival that involved images being projected onto the sails of the Opera House. Eno told BBC News, “…[A]rtists can create a sense of what is cool and what is not, what is acceptable, exciting, timely… I would like to see a future where artists think that they have a right to contemplate things like global warming.”

Discarded Umbrella Installation at Channel 4 Building in London

Artist Stephanie Imbeau came up with a strikingly creative idea to win Channel 4’s BIG4 public art competition. Her entry, ‘Shelter’, was an installation that involved constructing blocks of illuminated discarded umbrellas. Though unconnected, when viewed from a certain angle the blocks appeared as the number ‘4’. The installation stood in front of the Channel 4 building in London in March of 2009.

Tentacle Building Installation

An artist calling himself ‘FilthyLuker’ installed inflatable octopus tentacles in the windows of an unnamed building in June of 2009, making it appear as if the building is being devoured by a bright green kraken that somehow emerged from the sea and got stuck inside.

Erwin Wurm’s House Attack

In 2006, artist Erwin Wurm had an art exhibit at Austria’s MUMOK (Museum Moderner Kunst), displaying work that was often architectural in nature such as ‘fat houses’. Outside the building, the theme continued with an installation called ‘House Attack’ – an actual house imbedded in the museum’s roof.

Inversion Tunnel House

People passing by this building in Houston may have wondered whether it had suddenly turned into a black hole, or was the setting of some kind of explosion that defies the laws of physics. In fact, the strange tunnel was an art installation called ‘Inversion’ by Dan Havel and Dean Ruck, which was created just before the building was due to be torn down and replaced with a larger structure. The tunnel actually goes all the way through the building, ending in a private courtyard.

Turning the Place Over by Richard Wilson

In Liverpool, a former Yates Wine Lodge building sat empty and decaying for years until Richard Wilson, one of Britain’s most renowned sculptures, decided to make use of it for a project called ‘Turning the Place Over’. Wilson turned it into a piece of public art, cutting an oval from the exterior on one side and making it oscillate in three dimensions within the cutout. The artist, whose work is often inspired by engineering and construction, used a giant rotator usually used in the shipping and nuclear industries to keep the façade revolving.

Reflecting Light at Clark Shoes Headquarters by ROSO

“Light is only seen when reflected.” That is the observation that inspired an art installation called ‘Light’ by Studio ROSO for the Clarks Shoes headquarters in England. The work, situated in the communal courtyard in the center of the office building complex, consisted of mirrors strung from one end of the courtyard to the other. The strands of mirrors, organized into two ‘beams of light’, create a dynamic, ever-changing space as the wind and light changes throughout each day and as seasons pass.

Crochet Gas Station

Jennifer Marsh, crochet artist and director of the International Fiber Collaborative, saw an ugly, abandoned gas station and realized she could use it as the setting of a unique art installation that calls attention to our dependence on oil. Soliciting 3×3 foot squares from fiber artists all over the world, Marsh covered the entire building, along with two gas pumps, with the donated crochet squares.

The Defenestration Building by Brian Goggin

At an abandoned four-story building in San Francisco, furniture is leaping for its freedom from open windows – clocks poking their heads out and looking up at the sky, chairs making a run for it down the peeling brick walls and tables pitching themselves off the roof. The project is called Defenestration, a word meaning “to throw out of a window”, and was created by 100 volunteers.

Artist Brian Goggin describes it on his website thusly: “Located at the corner of Sixth and Howard Streets in San Francisco in an abandoned four-story tenement building, the site is part of a neighborhood that historically has faced economic challenge and has often endured the stigma of skid row status. Reflecting the harsh experience of many members of the community, the furniture is also of the streets, cast-off and unappreciated.”

1600 Empty Chairs

To some people, this art installation is nothing but a bunch of stacked cast-off chairs. But to Doris Salcedo, each of the 1600 chairs precariously balanced upon each other between two buildings in Istanbul stands for a victim of mass violence in her home country of Colombia. Salcedo wanted to commemorate anonymous victims, portraying their loss through empty chairs in a visual that resembles a mass grave. The installation was created for the 8th Instanbul Biennale in 2003.

Crossword Puzzle Apartment Building

The city of Lvov in Ukraine decided to give tourists an interesting enticement to visit: a crossword puzzle on the side of an apartment building that is completed by finding questions at major points of interests all over town. Walking around the city, visitors collect questions at museums, monuments, theaters, fountains and other locations and write down their guesses. During the day, the crossword puzzle is empty, but at night, special lights reveal the answers.

Nitty Gritty: The Wonder & Glory of Magnified Beach Sand

Dazzling in their variety and as individually unique as snowflakes, the sands of the world’s beaches take on a whole new level of awesomeness when viewed under high magnification.

Dr. Gary Greenberg has been doing just that since 2001 using high-definition, three-dimensional light microscopes of his own design.

My Grains

It’s said that beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but sometimes the beholder’s eye needs a little help to observe what smallness of size has heretofore kept hidden. Such is the case with beach sand, billions and billions of grains of which lurk on the world’s seashores oblivious to the crabs, seagulls and sunbathers who walk upon them unaware of what lies beneath.

And yet, as Dr. Gary Greenberg states, “as we walk along a beach we are strolling upon thousands of years of biological and geological history.” Indeed, while beaches themselves are constantly being built and rebuilt through the action of wind and waves, the formation of each individual grain of beach sand is a labor of love acting through time and tide.

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Greenberg (above) knows a bit about sand… bit by bit, as it were. Since 2001 he has been photographing and documenting exquisite photomicrographs of sand grains, flowers, food and more using high-definition, three-dimensional light microscopes he invented and developed in the 1990s. Professor Greenberg is currently the director of the Microscopy & Microanalysis Laboratory at the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy in Maui, where he enjoys ideal access to the island state’s wide variety of sandy beaches.

Microcosmic Menagerie

If one considers that sand grains are simply smaller versions of the boulders, rocks and pebbles they originated from, then it’s not too much of a stretch to accept that a large percentage of beach sand grains were once part of much larger seashells, corals, sponge skeletons and other calciferous organisms.

In some locations these tiny remnants of marine life make up the majority of sand grains, and yet they only attract our notice due to the pink or white tint they impart to the sand. We say it’s “pretty”… but up close it’s beautiful.

Scattered among sharp-edged and rounded stone one can spy honeycombed coral nodules, spiky sponge spicules, fragments of striped seashells and finely polished sea urchin spines. Chiseled down to size through the action of endless ocean waves, these fine grains exhibit an almost jewel-like appeal – eye-candy, as it were.

Those jagged grains that look like some new sugar-coated cereal? They’re not – though they may appear to be what one imagines starfish larvae might look like, these 5-pointed objects are actually the calcium carbonate (CaCO3) shells of foraminifera, tiny one-celled sea creatures abundant in the world’s oceans.

Fire & Icewater

Though sand grains formed from marine life remains are wondrous in their near-fractal reductive geometry, let’s not overlook the inorganic quotient of beach sand. Often of volcanic origin, these often colorful grains typically are carried down to the seashore by erosion of the very volcanoes that thrust their calderas above the waves thousands or millions of years ago. The volcanic sands of Hawaii shine under Greenberg’s microscopic spotlight, predominantly with the warm green tint of olivine crystals and semi-precious peridot.

Professor Greenberg doesn’t always look down (though we’re glad he does), and his pursuit of sand grains in all their microcosmic magnificence has taken him off the planet entirely, to the Moon.

Do lunar seas have beaches? Not as we know them, Jim, but our nearest celestial neighbor has sand in abundance. Greenberg’s images of moon sand grains illustrate the effect of waterless erosion over not just millions, but BILLIONS of years.

Ironically perhaps, one particular Earthly sand grain evokes the most universal of sentiments: that would be the pale blue dot in the image above, magnified by Dr. Greenberg in order to reveal its intricate organic geometry. Once again fractals come to mind when contemplating this reduced remnant of a marine snail shell. The mathematically precise spiral invites comparisons to hurricanes, galaxies, even the eye of God himself… all in the space of a single millimeter. Forget that old cliché, size doesn’t matter – the way you look at things does.

Forest Facade: Bamboo Shoots Up, Shades & Fences House

Yesterday’s steel bars are todays bamboo poles. Blinds and shades may add privacy, but do little to secure a property. A clever, cheap and green solution, this undulating sheet of bamboo does double-duty work (or triple, if you count the impressive aesthetic effect!).

ROEWU did not get lucky – they got smart: find something easy-growing that shoots up fast, buy what is for sale on the cheap, and make it work wonders, rather than bending a design to your whims at high material costs.

Opening windows is the easiest way to provide natural ventilation to a home – these green bamboo ‘fences’ are narrowly spaced to prevent intruders from climbing in an open void, but let air pass in and out naturally.

The concrete block walls making up the structural core of the house would be incredibly boring were it not for the addition of a dynamic and organic design element, almost like an abstract type of modern ivy (or vertical garden) climbing up the sides of the building.

On the inside, shadows can be seen, cast by the facade of sticks outside, but mostly it is a simple and efficient home, laid out to take advantage of a long and narrow lot, and finished with a combination of white walls and ceilings with wood floors, furniture and accents.

A mostly-metal rooftop deck is partially shaded by these as well, providing some visual separation from neighbors while allowing views out from above.

The end result is a sustainable three-story home that requires no window bars for safety nor air conditioning to control the heat., invites natural light and breezes without compromising personal security. Not bad for a house based on inexpensive materials and simple building methods

Small Bathroom, Big Idea: Space-Saving Fold-Out Fixtures

The best of both worlds: everything you could want from a master bathroom makeover except … there is no floor plan, minimal installation cost and essentially no remodeling involved. It is simply a

space-saving, portable, modular but fully-functional bathroom in a box.

Rather than redo the entire room, this cool concept involves new installation rather than radical renovation.The fixtures flip out from the compact box unit pushed against the wall – showers are a simple transformation away. Writes Michael Trudgeon of his futuristic interior design idea: “Cirrus MVR is a re-locatable modular bathroom built around a central water recycling and purifying unit. The stainless steel module is equipped with a built-in bath, shower, toilet and hand basin … while using a fraction of the water that current bathroom fittings require.”

Pictures do not do this bathroom concept justice – you could tuck this unit in any interior space large or small. Layouts matter only insofar as there remains sufficient area for the fold-down functions (though tile and backsplash might be good ideas to include as well). In short: it is the perfect plug-and-play room-within-a-room – the easiest home addition in the world (providing you have space for it)

Wood, Stone & Glass Home Brings the Outside Indoors

Many architects talk of responding to the site and integrating their buildings with the surrounding natural environment, but few execute that intention with the compelling completeness shown in

this house design. Moreover, the decisions that shaped this unique home were driven as much by sustainability and energy savings as they were by aesthetics and formal considerations.

The glass roof that spans the main structure allows natural lighting deep into the Base Valley House while providing a way for breezes crossing the site to pass through and cool the structure. Bedrooms carved out of the ground below are kept out of the sun and cooled year round by the surrounding earth.

Encased in wire mesh, stone retaining walls continue seamlessly from outdoors through the inside of the house, providing structural support to hold back surrounding dirt. However, this critical design move is also a tangible visible connection from the rocky bed of an adjacent outside stream to the carved (also stream-like) passage that serves as the main indoor circulation and gathering space.

Solar Project Brings Water and Crops to Desert

The Sahara Desert is a notoriously hostile environment where it is almost impossible to survive – let alone grow and thrive. The Sahara Forest Project is an audacious environmental undertaking aims to change all of that. Using an inspired combination of solar power and seawater, an ambitious collective of environmental designers, architects and engineers has plans to convert part this harsh desert into a thriving plant paradise that will bring food, water and power to one of the most unlikely places on the planet.

The first critical move is to use concentrated solar power bring in vast amounts of solar energy via huge arrays of mirrors that will supply the installation with electrical power and heat. The second essential step is the employment of seawater greenhouses which useseawater rather than tapping into the depleted underwater freshwater sources via wells. The solar power is used to evaporate the seawater, clean and cool it, and to spread the conditioned air throughout a system of greenhouses.

The result: cool air, plenty of freshwater moisture, and copious plant growth. What can be grown? Essentially anything you can imagine, including most kinds of staple produce found in your local grocery stores. Best of all, the seawater being used is rich in nutrients which can be used in the growing process which in turn minimizes the need to bring in external nutrient sources from outside of this closed system.

And outside of the system? Extra clean water can be released into the local atmosphere and create a regional microclimate that can sustain the growth of some kinds of plants that can live outside of the greenhouses. In the long run, then, not only can the greenhouses themselves provide food but the entire operation can improve the regional climactic conditions and repair environmental damage (such as fresh water depletion) slowly change the local ecosystem back to something closer to what it was thousands of years ago.

Man-Made Jungle:Architecture for Rain Forests & More

Beautiful and untamed, the jungle can be an inhospitable setting for human inhabitance when dwellings are not designed in harmony with the climate and landscape. These 12 rainforest homes,

resorts and communities work with their surroundings – and often very hot and humid weather – using such architectural features as slatted wooden window coverings, yet maintain a vital connection to nature with floor-to-ceiling windows and verandahs aplenty.

Shell House by ARTechnic, Japan

Making your way through the humid forests of Karuizawa, Japan, a giant shell hovering three and a half feet above the ground is not exactly a sight you expect to see. Architects ARTechnic were inspired by an unlikely combination of natural shell shapes and the concept of humans taking over an abandoned spacecraft. The concrete materials, a mold-preventing floor-heating system and the fact that the building is off the ground all help it stand up to a harsh wet yet cold environment that takes a heavy toll on many other structures in the area.

Tropical Bamboo Home, Costa Rica

was designed by architect Benjamin Garcia Saxe for his mother, combining local building traditions with modern techniques to engage the home’s jungle environment. Open to the outdoors, the home features exterior walls made of angled bamboo poles that prevent water from getting in but allow air flow for natural cooling, and

BR House by Marcio Kogan, Brazil

In the dense rainforest outside Rio de Janeiro lies this angular modernist home, which stands out in stark contrast – quite deliberately – to its natural environment. The BR house has been raised on thick tree trunk-like pillars to place the inhabitants at the level of the forest canopy, making the structure seem as if it’s supported by the trees. Massive glass walls further blur the lines between inside and outside.

Alila Villas Uluwatu, Bali

Wishing to move away from the traditional ornate dark wood, reeds and thatch roofing of typical Balinese architecture, Singapore-based architecture firm  enhanced this flat-roofed modern structure with bronze, reclaimed wood and marble. The residential villas and hotel features pool cabanas with slatted wood that not only makes a strong design statement, but provides privacy and allows air to circulate.

Lofted Forest Home by Robert Harvey Oshatz

The curving organic forms and natural materials of this structure by architect Robert Harvey Oshatz seems as if it could have grown out of the forest, calling to mind knots of wood and twisting branches. The curves, in fact, are strategically placed to take full advantage of the space in between the trees that surround the building, giving it the feel of

Finca Bellavista Treehouse Resort, Costa Rica

Treehouses of all sorts are a natural in jungle environments, and Finca Bellavista – an eco village in Costa Rica – is a veritable display of the various styles and designs that are possible, letting residents create their own sustainable structures in the treetops. Described as the world’s first planned, modern treehouse community, Finca Bellavista features a large community complex with a dining hall and an open-air lounge as well as a “Sky Trail” transportation network of hanging boardwalks.

Modern Rainforest Home in Rural Costa Rica

Placed on an abandoned concrete foundation and core steel structural frame, this in the jungle of Costa Rica reused the displaced timber that was cleared prior to construction. Floor-to-ceiling windows provide practically uninterrupted views of the forest and the sea, and an infinity pool enhances the balance between clean, contemporary architecture and immersion in the untamed setting.

Pier House, Brazil

Built to house a sailboat during the week and its owners on the weekends, the Pier House in Paraty, Brazil is divided into two volumes, the low-lying boathouse and the larger white structure of the house itself. The house, designed by Gabriel Grinspum and Mariana Simas, bridges the space between the water and the jungle behind it, utilizing traditional ‘muxarabi’ slatted windows to filter the light and provide ventilation.

V-Houses by Heinz Legler, Mexico

Open to the warm winds of the Pacific Ocean, the prefabricated V-Houses provide a rustic modern jungle retreat in Yelapa, Mexico, outside of Puerto Vallarta. Three of the resort’s guest houses stand out from the trees, made out of steel, plywood and red corrugated iron roofs.

The Green Village by Ibuku, Bali

Back to Bali, this beautiful green village of bamboo homes is a master-planned community built along a river by Balinese firm Ibuku. Literally everything in the village’s first completed home is made from bamboo, from the walls and window frames to the furniture and cabinets.

YTL Residence, Kuala Lumpur

A clear glass facade covered in slatted wood – again, for filtering sunlight and providing privacy yet still allowing a view – is among the standout features of the YTL residence in Kuala Lumpur. Designed by Paris-based Jouin Manku for a theoretical ‘Malaysian power family’, the residence is sleek and contemporary, raised above the treetops to provide the best possible view. Greenery planted along the upper deck brings the jungle closer to the home even as the architecture seeks to separate itself from nature.

Ecological Resort Concept, Dominica

What does the future hold for jungle architecture? This concept for a sustainable future development along Mero Beach on the west coast of the Commonwealth of Dominica, a tropical island in the Caribbean, seeks to promote tourism in a way that is sensitive of the island’s rainforests. Designed by BURO II, which has already completed a project of similar scale in Guangzhou, China, the resort includes a mixture of villas, bungalows and apartments as well as retail, entertainment, a hotel, conference facilities and parking, but integrates these functions with the natural setting using sustainable materials, native landscaping and an architectural scale that does not distract from the beauty of the island itself.