The Velvet State came up as an ambition to combine performance and architecture in a project at the Roskilde Festival 2013.

The core of the project emerged via an ongoing dialogue between the performers and the architects, adopting and merging the two disciplines into one universe.

The physical structure covered an area of 794 square meters with the highest point of 7 meters. It consisted of seven parts, which together created one united structure that framed the performance and together with it formed a parallel universe.

All parts were built in shells of plywood assembled with bolts and “sewings” in polycarbonate. Each part was designed over the same catenary curve as the section itself. And each part consisted of a sequence of sections which were variations of this one curve. In this way every part became individual with its own appearance and spatial qualities, and at the same time it was part of a greater whole.

The plywood shells acted both as façade and as support for the structure. 12, 9, 6 and 4 mm thick plywood was used. The thick plywood was placed in the bottom and the thin in the top. Each plywood shell was bent into a singular curve and all together these curves created the structural support for the whole project. The shells were fastened to a leveled base which was attached to the ground with one meter long earth spikes.

Part of the architectural unfolding was to investigate how variations of the same curve could create a rich spatial appearance. Also the unfolding tested the structural concept and assemble methods in a large scale

More:

Architects: Shjworks Architectural
Location: Darupvej, Roskilde, Denmark
Architect In Charge: Simon Hjermind Jensen
Design Team: Christian Bøcker Sørensen
Photographs: Simon Hjermind Jensen, Christian Böcker Sörensen, Lasse Ryberg