-
Architects: Atelier Central Arquitectos
- Area: 147 m²
- Year: 2013
-
Photographs:Atelier Central Arquitectos
-
Technical Consulting: Lightlab, Dimscale, Carlos Duarte, Artur Sousa
Text description provided by the architects. Concept
Designing a mysterious dynamic white veil that segregates the cars on display from the surroundings.
Project
An alternating transparent and translucent glass surface that stimulates reflections, reveals/conceals different light shapes, discloses images, frames videos, and eludes the perception of the boundaries. The unending movement of the spontaneous line surrounds the available space, hiding corners and eliminating boundaries.
On one side, a wall of uniform light ending with a vertical blue LED light that refers to BMWi. On the other side, round car headlights that switch to become visible, and then switch off, and disappear. The lighting in the ceiling, apparently scattered at random, takes us to the world of high-speed movement.
Day light, with high chromatic definition, over the showroom area, with its higher ceiling, and warm light welcoming people to the reception areas, with lower ceiling height. A tranquil design that allows the cars on display to express the importance of the project essence.
The doors to the bathroom, the storeroom, the technical areas and the access to the latter disappear, concealed by the deliberate detailing of the glass surface and the trapdoors in the false ceiling. Hey presto, and we have a car display platform as defined by the BMWi Programme!
Strict criteria of sustainability and respect for the environment are major concerns of the BMW Group and are reflected in the project. The space is lit by LED lights. The glass in the display window was replaced to gain solar radiation control and reduce the coefficient of thermal transmittance. A heat recovery system was coupled to the air-conditioning equipment.
