Tree-like structures designed to recreate the humidity of a rainforest have been installed by German-Chilean office Gun Architects outside the Architectural Association (AA) in London's Bedford Square (+ slideshow).
The temporary Rainforest pavilion was created by Gun Architects to offer a "forest-like environment of raindrops, pools and plants" where visitors can take time out from the hustle and bustle of the city.
Seven columns with hexagonal tops provide the framework for the structure. These tessellate to form the tree-like canopy, from which the architects have suspended a series of fabric triangles that gradually drip water like stalactites.
Underneath the five-metre-high canopy, a stony ground surface creates a planting area for ferns.
Rainforest is based on Gun Architect's earlier project entitled Water Cathedral, created as part of the MoMA PS1 Young Architects Program, and forms part of the studio's ongoing research into the relationship between architecture and climate.
The installation is accompanied by an exhibition in the AA gallery detailing the development of this research.
A different pavilion is installed outside the AA every summer, as part of the London Festival of Architecture. Past structures include the CNC-milled Driftwood and the latticed Swoosh.
Read on for more information from the Architectural Association:
Gun Architects: Rainforest
Rainforest is a public pavilion by Chilean-German architecture practice Gun Architects, installed in London's Bedford Square during the summer of 2014. An imposing five metre high micro-climate of minimal tree-like structures with a field of pyramidal fabric "stalactites" which gently drip water – the pavilion is an oasis in the centre of London. Visitors can sit beneath a canopy of inverted prisms to enjoy a forest-like environment of raindrops, pools and plants.
Rainforest is part of Gun Architects' exploration into natural dynamics in the diverse Chilean climate – making water a protagonist of the architecture, where the production of temporal atmospheres is based on water circulation and accumulation. The practice engages in architectural and urban projects rooted in the environmental and cultural context of Chile, attempting to develop design forms which are consistent with current urban expansion and its associated geographical conditions.
An exhibition in the main AA Gallery accompanies the pavilion and describes the development of Rainforest through earlier research by Gun Architects, the pavilion's conceptual evolution and technical engineering. The exhibition also features photographic works by Cristobal Palma and Helene Binet.
Rainforest will form a major part of the AA's most important event of the year, Projects Review 2014, which takes place from 28th June to 19th July and is our annual celebration of the work of the school, attended by 4,000 members of the public, students, AA members, journalists and architects.
The installation will also be part of the 2014 London Festival of Architecture – an annual event that "celebrates the city's role as a global hub of architectural experimentation, thinking, learning and practice." The festival takes place between the 1st and 30th of June.