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Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Energetic Energies for Panasonic in Milano, Italy by Akihisa Hirata Architecture OfficeApril 21st, 2013 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: Akihisa Hirata Architecture Office Environmental protection and the idea of a new dialogue between nature and the city are central themes in the work of the versatile young Japanese architect Akihisa Hirata. This is his introduction to Energetic Energies, the installation that Panasonic will present at the upcoming Salone del Mobile.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca
 Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca Faced with environmental issues and the belief that nature and human society are irreconcilable opposites, Panasonic offers an alternative viewpoint as part of the Hybrid Architecture & Design exhibition at the University of Milan, a vision that considers our cities an integral part of the planet and the universe.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca Akihisa Hirata’s work, installed beneath the Largo Richini Portico at the university, is a poetic and conceptual transposition of a new vision, in which people and spaces coalesce to produce something integral and sustainable: an enchanted city where the roofs of the buildings and houses are covered in miniature solar panels, which, like climbing ivy, merge seamlessly with nature.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca This visionary project revives a sense of wonder and tackles pressing topics such as the reduction of our environmental footprint, the survival of the planet and the constant search for ways to improve our lifestyle. By juxtaposing environmentalism and romanticism, the architect aimed to illustrate Panasonic’s objective; for years the company has focused its research and technological development on sustainability and on a system based on the creation, storage and saving energy.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca This innovative set-up can be applied not only to houses, offices and shops, but also to entire cities, with the aim of creating a ‘sustainable smart town’.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca The company wants to demonstrate a new energy landscape, where energy creation (through solar panels), energy storage (through storage batteries), energy saving (through LED lights), and energy management take a new form in a city environment.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca Precisely in the light of this desirable scenario, Hirata imagines innovative solar panels, no longer with a fixed structure but mobile and flexible, inspired for example by the pattern of foliage and based on hybrid systems that can bring environment and technology together.  Image Courtesy © Santi Caleca The city of the future – according to the Energetic Energies concept – features solar panels scattered over buildings like plants, creating a landscape of hills. Projected shadows of clouds pass slowly over these “hills”, as if moving atop the landscape, encouraging city residents to regain their relationship with the forgotten sky.  Image Courtesy © Satoshi Shigeta This is a model that sits perfectly with the green revolution that Panasonic has led for years, but which also has a hint of something more profound, a reflection on our existence and a philosophical vision that promotes the concept of common well-being, instilled with a dynamic, vital force, where a superior, systematic civilisation can benefit from spaces inspired by natural principles.  Image Courtesy © Satoshi Shigeta  Image Courtesy akihisa hirata architecture office  Image Courtesy akihisa hirata architecture office  Image Courtesy akihisa hirata architecture office
Category: Energetic Energy |
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