SolPix, Energy-Positive Media Skin, a ground-breaking solar powered sun shading media wall system created by Simone Giostra & Partners Architects is the focal point of a large installation, designed by Giostra, for the Cooper Hewitt Design Triennial 2010.
The site-specific installation is located in the Conservatory of the Museum as the centerpiece of “Why Design Now?”, the only Design Triennial in the Country and the most ambitious one to date.
Positioned at the convergence of technology, design and the environment, SolPix is a full-scale working prototype demonstrating the ability of the system to interact with its environs while improving the energy performance of the Museum. Giostra collaborated with artists Jeremy Rotsztain and Rory Nugent on the installation.
Featuring a large scale color LED display and photovoltaic panels integrated to a sun-shading system, SolPix transforms the existing glass structure into an energy-positive skin, harvesting solar energy and using it to power the screen, while protecting the Conservatory from excessive solar radiation.
Considering that buildings are responsible for 60% of the overall energy consumption, transforming our cities into energy-positive systems would resolve the energy crisis and radically improve the quality of our living environment. Accurate analysis of yearly solar irradiance in the Conservatory shows that a sufficient amount of incident energy will be converted by the photovoltaic panels into energy for powering the media wall.
SolPix will constantly monitor its own performance using embedded, custom designed software that visually displays the energy balance of the system, using an algorithm to generate motion graphics and transforming the installation into a responsive environment for entertainment and public engagement.
SolPix allows daylight into the Conservatory while controlling its exposure to direct sunlight, reducing heat gain and transforming excessive solar radiation into energy for the media wall. When applied to building exteriors, the sun-shading elements provide unobstructed outside views from the building interior, while lending a contemporary texture to the building exterior.
The horizontal or vertical panels can be mounted at a preferred angle or can be rotated in order to maximize exposure to direct sunlight. Additionally, SolPix is a transparent media wall with digital screen capabilities for dynamic content display.
