Loops: a meditative experience designed to enchant
Loops is an artistic-spatial installation at the heart of the recently-inaugurated Anna-Seiler-Haus building of the Bern’s University Hospital Inselspital designed to enchant and provide a memorable experience to visitors, patients and medical staff.
As part of a codesign process with the Inselspital staff as well as in collaboration with GWJ, IAAG, ASTOC and Archipel General Planer, MKT engineering, Spy, this kinetic structure offers a captivating dialogue with the space and its users through 24 rings softly floating in a perpetual choreography in one of the two atria of the building with its minimal design offering an endless palette of evocative shapes inspired by nature.
By integrating time, space and technology while respecting the physical and functional requirements of the hospital, Studio Banana´s design conjugates art and architecture to create a fascinating eye-catcher for meditative breaks that helps enrich the hospital environment.
A floating structure
Visually bound inside the 25 metre-high atrium of the Anna-Seiler-Haus, Loops’ non-invasive shape consists of 24 aluminium rings of varying diameters that integrate an LED glowing surface on their inner rims. Suspended by two cables and steered by two motorised winches, each ring can move horizontally and vertically. It is the synchronicity of the rings that creates the impression of 3D movement constantly forming in space.
Spanning up to 21 m in height, 6 m in width and 8 m in length and contrasting with the orthogonal structure of the architecture through its smoothly edged rings, Loops offers different points of views and perspectives from the 5 floors of the atrium, allowing for many different interpretations and perceptions at once while marvelling the viewer again and again.
A subtle dialogue with the space
Inspired by the ever-changing and unstoppable cyclical movements of nature, the seemingly weightless rings conforming Loops are constantly drawing ethereal trajectories and creating sophisticated choreographic patterns. The hypnotic dance is enhanced by carefully studied luminosity and speed.
Aesthetically understandable and universally engaging, its design allows for many alternative interpretations at once. The five floors around the atrium give rise to multiple points of view as the spectator and the installation move; thus stimulating new perspectives and individual experiences.
An endless movement
As the independent rings move freely, the structure allows for different choreographies following unexpected impulses throughout the day to ensure a wide variety of patterns. In the early morning and late evening the movements are calmer, while during the day the choreographies pick up speed.
At night, the installation remains in a calm placid standby mode in the middle of the atrium and only shows a play of lights.
In addition, every hour on the dot, the 24 rings converge towards the centre and through a luminous pulse indicates the time.
Quotes
“Loops consists of 24 rings that move in space, creating a three-dimensional form that allows for very different emotions and interpretations. One of the biggest challenges for us was that the building is experienced from very different perspectives throughout the day. For the installation, to perform accordingly, we choreographed the movements to take into account the different points of view in the atrium. Throughout the day, there is always something new to discover”.
Saskia Hinger, Lead Strategist at Studio Banana
“To see Loops here now is really incredibly impressive. It's an insanely awesome, sensual, aesthetic impression of the movement in space. You want to know constantly, what comes next? And at the same time it's also very calming and meditative”.
Julia Schankin, Marketing Manager at Inselspital
“Our task was to translate the designers´ideas and concepts into reality as best as possible, to construct it, to build it. What looks so light and elegant here is the interaction of a technical system weighing a total of six tons. There are very few installations of this kind in the world”.
Alexander Bresinsky, Business Development MKT Engineering
Technical details
Project: Loops
Client: Inselspital
Opening date: August 2023
Address: Inselspital, Universitätsspital Bern, Freiburgstrasse, CH-3010 Bern, Switzerland
Kinetic elements: 24 aluminium rings ( ⌀ 1.1-1.5 m), illuminated
Materials: Aluminium, LED lighting, steel cables
Measures:
21 m high x 6 m width x 8 m length
6 tones weight
Movement area: 14.5 x 5 m (ring centres)
Drive: 48 electric winches (special design with servo motors)
Precision: positioning accuracy < 1 mm
Max. Speed: 0.8 m/s
System weight: 6t total incl. winches and electrics, 11-14 kg per kinetic element
Rope lengths: 3 km in total
Team:
Studio Banana: Installation Designers
MKT Engineering: Engineering and execution
Archipel: General planner
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