July 17, 2008

SIMONE GIOSTRA ARUP

The “zero energy” media display on a Beijing entertainment complex uses photovoltaic cells laminated within the glass of the curtainwall.

GreenPix curtainwall showcases digital media art in Beijing

BEIJING

A “zero energy” media wall that applies sustainable and digital media technology to the curtainwall of an entertainment complex near the site of the 2008 Olympics is up and running.

The groundbreaking GreenPix project was designed and implemented by New York-based Simone Giostra & Partners in conjunction with Arup, a global firm of designers and engineers. Arup was responsible for lighting design and façade engineering.

The building opened to the public in June with a specially commissioned program of video installations and live performances.

Featuring the largest colour LED display worldwide and the first photovoltaic system integrated into a glass curtainwall in China, GreenPix transforms the building envelope into “a self-sufficient organic system” harvesting solar energy by day and using it to illuminate the screen after dark, mirroring a day’s climatic cycle.

“The media wall will provide the city of Beijing with its first venue dedicated to digital media art, while offering the most radical example of sustainable technology applied to an entire building’s envelope to date,” Giostra said.

With the support of German manufacturers Schueco and SunWays, Giostra and Arup developed a new technology for laminating photovoltaic cells in a glass curtainwall and oversaw the production of the first glass solar panels by Chinese manufacturer SunTech. The polycrystalline photovoltaic cells are laminated within the glass of the curtainwall and placed with changing density on the entire building’s skin.

The density pattern increases the building’s performance, allowing natural light when required, while reducing heat gain and transforming excessive solar radiation into energy for the media wall. Simone Giostra & Partners has designed innovative curtainwalls in both Europe and the United States.

DCN NEWS SERVICES

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