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Spiral Booths

Architectural Model
2009 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Using the landscape of the Museum as a test site, the V&A invited nineteen architects to submit proposals for structures that examine notions of refuge and retreat. Responding to specific locations in the Museum, the architects explored themes such as study, work, play, performance and contemplation. Seven of the proposals were then selected for construction at full-scale.

These projects promoted an attitude to architecture where to 'dwell' meant something more than simply to find shelter. Each building invited the participation of the viewer. These immersive environments reawakened people's ability to inhabit architectural space on both a physical and an emotional level.

Consisting of inter-connected performance booths set around a spiral staircase, this project is a test site for newly devised live commissions. The staircase can operate as a corridor, as seating, or as a stage. A number of framing devices exist, including red curtains at the booth entrances and the steel mesh screens and acrylic windows which allow a view into the structure.

Object details

Category
Object type
TitleSpiral Booths (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Acrylic
Brief description
Model for 1:1 Architects Build Small Spaces exhibition, by Vazio, Brazil, 2009.
Physical description
An acrylic model of a series of small compartments arranged around a spiral staircase to form a tower, the staircase and walls of the compartments are made out of white acrylic and are held in place by vertical rods made out of clear acrylic. Between these rods, around the exterior of the structure, there are panels of clear acrylic which have been overlaid with a white acrylic mesh. The structure is fixed to a square, grey acrylic base and screwed into a perspex box.
Dimensions
  • Height: 380mm
  • Width: 260mm
  • Depth: 260mm
Style
Summary
Using the landscape of the Museum as a test site, the V&A invited nineteen architects to submit proposals for structures that examine notions of refuge and retreat. Responding to specific locations in the Museum, the architects explored themes such as study, work, play, performance and contemplation. Seven of the proposals were then selected for construction at full-scale.

These projects promoted an attitude to architecture where to 'dwell' meant something more than simply to find shelter. Each building invited the participation of the viewer. These immersive environments reawakened people's ability to inhabit architectural space on both a physical and an emotional level.

Consisting of inter-connected performance booths set around a spiral staircase, this project is a test site for newly devised live commissions. The staircase can operate as a corridor, as seating, or as a stage. A number of framing devices exist, including red curtains at the booth entrances and the steel mesh screens and acrylic windows which allow a view into the structure.
Bibliographic reference
Thomas, Abraham, 1:1 Architects Build Small Spaces, London: V&A Publishing, 2010. ISBN 9781851776412
Collection
Accession number
E.1448-2010

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Record createdFebruary 1, 2011
Record URL
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