INNOCAD and 13&9 are both transdisciplinary companies that specialize in architecture, sound design, interior design, research and product design. Their corporate philosophy is about acknowledging diversity. Through this, they can design holistically and have innovative ideas. One of their projects was to design the interior of the solar innovation centre in Dubai. This is a museum for solar energy in the desert. The building is a helix-like tower, which has an atrium in the middle. Heliostats project sunlight into the building and through other mirrors to the bottom of the building. In their cellar, INNOCAD experimented with dividing light into spectral colours. They also realized that there is a direct connection between light frequencies and sound frequencies, so they installed sensors to create sound for the light show. I believe that it is especially important to experiment with the elements first – as they did – because you can refine your idea and concept this way.
INNOCAD were inspired by the golden ratio and their formerly golden logo and designed their head office, the “golden nugget”, accordingly. They also designed a dress which was inspired by the golden ratio. It consists of a band which is folded according to the golden ratio. The dress was 3D printed and made of 3D knitted metal fibres. I find this idea to use the same design approach for fashion design interesting. However, the dress lacks functionality and is, therefore, more like a piece of art.
Rolling Stones was a project, where INNOCAD designed the interior of the armoury museum in Graz. The element they used throughout the project was “Murnockerl” to create a holistic design, which is connected to the city of Graz. In the visitor centre, they designed a unique shelving system, inspired by the “Murnockerl”. Additionally, they made a modern armory sculpture made of laser-cut stone veneer. In another project, they designed dynamic floor tiles by creating a relief that looks different depending on where you position yourself in the room. Afterwards, a dress was designed using the dynamic tile as a core element. These three elements were then exhibited in Berlin. In each room within the exhibition, there is a mirror, a screen (showing the making of) and a sound installation. The soundscape was inspired by each object and its material. I watched the video they showed at the end of the lecture and what I saw was a well-designed exhibition with great sound design and it actually inspired me a lot.
