Architectural Skin
Team
Name: İlayda Ergin
Nationality: Turkish
Institution / Company: TOBB University of Economics and Technology
Name: Özge Zabun
Nationality: Turkish
Institution / Company: Zahan Mimarlık
-FINALIST of Waterless World Competition
Along with climate change and excessive concretion, rain is no longer something that creates life and joy. Climate change and sudden rains cause torrents and flooding. While there’s drought throughout the world and waters in metropolitan areas are on the verge of exhaustion, this shortage and wastage must be ended. Water, as it always has, must be a means of life, rather than destruction.
In time every drop of water and every inch of soil will be precious more than ever. Cities and neighborhoods will become grand skyscrapers, grand urban organisms.
Maybe the solution is at our fingertips.
The outer layer of human skin is made up of matrix-like structures called corneocytes. They’re nano-woven in 5 dimentions to let the skin absorb and store water when it’s wet. They quickly become much less permeable when conditions are dry.
A corneocyte’s nano-modelled to make facades live. Architectural Skin is developed to store and use rainwater. The skin supports structural load using buildings’ external skin, as a monocoque, just like skin supporting bones and muscles. The layers provide a grand shelter from extreme weathers and sun rays. Most importantly, it makes water to create a new meaning to life and community.
#biomimicry #fingertip #climate change #drought #flooding
