New European Bauhaus Prizes 2023

Project category

Identify the award category for which this project is being submitted
Reconnecting with nature

Email user
gd@gustav-duesing.com

Basic information
Project title
Sunsight to Sunclipse

Full Project Title
Sunsight to Sunclipse, a solar power kinetik installation

Please provide a short, catchy description of your project to be used in communication towards the public.
„Sunsight to Sunclipse“ is a kinetic installation from 2021. The screen, made to
rotate by solar energy, creates spatial undulations through the Coriolis effect, which are subject to the same principles as the Rossby Waves, planetary meanders that influence our global weather. The installation thus creates an communal architectural space that is directly related to the energy of the sun, while at the the same time creating a local microclimate.

What was the geographical scope of your project?
Cross-border/international

Where was your project implemented?
Location 1
Italy

Location 2
Germany

Member State(s), Western Balkans and other countries
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If relevant, insert names of region(s)/municipality(ies) involved
German Academy in Rome, Villa Massimo
Staatliche Kunstsammlung Dresden

Does your project address mainly urban or rural issues?
It addresses urban-rural linkages

Does your project refer to a physical transformation of the built environment or other types of transformations (hard or soft investments)?
It refers to other types of transformations (soft investment)

Has your project benefited from EU programmes and/or funds?
No

Has your project won an EU prize with a monetary value awarded?
No

Is your project fully completed
Yes

Please indicate a date (mm/yy)
2021-04-01

On whose behalf are you submitting the application?
As an individual
Please provide the contact details for the project promoter (the individual or representative of the organisation authorised to represent the project).
- First name: Gustav
  Last name: Düsing
  Gender: Male
  Nationality: Germany
  Address (country of permanent residence for individuals or address of the organisation)<br/>Street and number: Kiefholzstr., 2
  Town: Berlin
  Postal code: 12435
  Country: Germany
  Direct Tel: +4917623143165
  E-mail: gd@gustav-duesing.com
  Website: https://gustav-duesing.com/
Social Media accounts (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc.)
- URL: https://www.instagram.com/gustavdusing/
In case my project is selected as a finalist of the NEB Prizes 2023, I agree to share the name (individual and/or organisation’s), email address, website and social media accounts indicated above with other NEB Prizes finalists. I also agree to publish the name (individual and/or organisation’s), website and social media accounts indicated above next to the public description of my project in the channels of the European Commission.
Yes

How did you hear about the New European Bauhaus Prizes?
New European Bauhaus or European Commission websites

Description of the project
Please provide a summary of your project.
The name ‘sunsight to sunclipse’ refers to the earth rotating around the sun, which means the sun does not rise, but rather becomes visible (sunsight) and darkens again to our sight in the evening (sunclipse). The atmosphere can ultimately be understood as a gigantic architectural shell, in which we live together with all other species. These terms were coined by Buckminster Fuller, who compares the earth to a spaceship in his book ‘Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth’.

The original concept of architecture is to shield us from the brute forces of nature by being static and resilient. The architectural shell is the interface between us and the exterior and thus had a strong influence on our relationship with the natural world. Sunsight to Sunclipse uses natural laws to develop a new architecture that’s soft and in direct contact with the environment and its ever-changing conditions. Could architecture potentially be like an atmosphere? By using the energy of the sun, the installation behaves in synergy with planetary constellations and is a direct transformation of energy into architectural space. Known as the Coriolis Effect, waves similar to the Rossby Waves – giant serpentine streams of high altitude winds, largely responsible for the global weather, create a space that represents a new type of architecture which understands itself as part of a larger planetary system that is fluid, dynamic, and responsive. We can´t experience these Rossby Waves but they control much of the global climate, therefore the project is fundamentally about giving access to a phenomena that greatly affect our lives individually and collectively, but are otherwise unknown to us. As a communal space the pavilion allows people to gather inside for a rich collective experience.

Please indicate the main themes of your project with 5 key words.
solar energy as building material

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
climate responsive architecture

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
architecture as atmosphere

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
climate as an organizational principle

Please indicate the main themes of your project with key words
kinetik architecture

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of sustainability and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
The project aims to use energy as a building material. By using solar energy, which is only available during the day, the facility behaves accordingly. During the sun hours it opens up to a larger common space and at night it shrinks to the size of a single bedroom. In this way, the installation allows for different programs depending on the availability of resources. This concept challenges the static behavior of traditional architecture by adapting to natural phenomena.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of aesthetics and quality of experience for people (through design, positive emotions and cultural benefits) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
The super-light, soft shell, which only becomes an architectural volume through movement, consists of no structure. The white fabric moves silently through the space, creating ever new shapes. Visitors experience a sense of magic when they are under the umbrella, the gentle breeze cools the atmosphere and one is finally transported into a new kind of space that seems to be in synergy with its surroundings.

Please give information about the key objectives of your project in terms of inclusion (ranging from accessibility and affordability for all to inclusive governing systems, design for all principles or new societal models) and how these have been met. Please highlight how the project can be exemplary in this context.
The project is mainly about the inclusion of natural laws into architecture. Static architecture is mainly about fighting the laws of nature and physics by being designed to stand the brute force of nature. Sunsight to Sunclipse is soft and reacts to its external parameters and is thereby responsive and inclusive.

Please explain the way citizens benefiting from or affected by the project and civil society have been involved in the project and what has been the impact of this involvement on the project
As a concept, the project aims to open the discussion on the role of architecture in relation to the availability of resources. Can architectural space
be a direct result of local natural phenomena? Ultimately, can architecture be like an atmosphere powered by the sun that creates local weather? The installation is a prototype that experiments with the idea of how much architecture is really necessary for which program, can we get away from the idea of our western lifestyle?

Please explain how different stakeholders at various levels (local, regional, national, European) were engaged in the design and implementation of the project. Please highlight what the added value of their engagement was.
The project was developed during a residency program at the German Academy in Rome, Villa Massimo. For the development of the project I engaged with local workshops and fabricators. To calculate the actual piece and its structure I was in close collaboration with researchers from France and the US.

Please explain which disciplines and/ or knowledge fields were reflected in the design and implementation of your project. Please explain how representatives of these different fields interacted with each other, and what the added value of this process was.
The project is as much physics as it is architecture. It was a fruitful conversation between me and the scientists which I consulted on the topic. Their way of looking at the structure as a testing object in combination with my interest in the quality of space was a beautiful new way of developing an architectural project.

Please give information on the results, outcomes and impacts achieved by your project in relation to the category you apply for. This includes also benefits from the project for direct and indirect beneficiaries
The installation served as the basis for many symposiums and lectures, at conferences and international Universities. The installation was re-installed at the Staatliche Kunstsammlung Dresden to be experienced by the public for the duration of three month in 2022.

Please provide documents showing the results, outcomes and impacts of your project
Web link
Web link
Please highlight the innovative character of the project, when compared to mainstream actions in the field of the project
The project combines physics with architecture and a new way. Solar energy has traditionally being used to provide building services such as electricity and hot water. Sunsight to Sunclipse uses solar energy to create an architectural space while at the same time becoming an inhabitable air-condition.

Please describe the methodology or approach used in your project.
The goal was to try to create a space with the most minimal material possible, ultimately I used solar energy to open up a spinning umbrella.

Please describe which elements of your project could be replicated or transferred to other places, groups of beneficiaries and context. This may involve for example aspects of the methodology, technology, processes, products, learnings etc.
The project could be applied as a large shading device in hot climates. The combination of shade and air ventilation could help communities to cool down public spaces by using the energy of the omnipresent sun.

Please explain what kind of global challenges the project addresses by providing local solutions
The project addresses two very pressing issues: Material scarcity and energy scarcity. Especially now, with the war in Ukraine, locally generated energy and materials help to become independent from the uncertain global distribution networks. On a personal level, the project aims to promote climate awareness in our society by incorporating climate into our daily routines. To combat climate change, it is important to move away from Western habits of consumption and comfort and adapt to the availability of resources and energy by living locally and eco-minimalist.
Please attach at least 6 high resolution images (or other types of visual representations, if images are not possible) to your application.
If you would like to upload additional documentation, please upload or write below
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By submitting your application you confirm that you are the copyright owner of the images provided and that they can be used by the European Commission for the purposes of promoting the New European Bauhaus on all platforms (websites, print, social media and other).
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that you are not in in one or more of the exclusion situations foreseen under Article 136 of the Financial Regulation.
Yes

By submitting this application, I declare that I am not related to the entities subject to EU restricted measures under Article 29 of the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and subject to Article 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU (TFEU)1, and entities covered by Commission Guidelines No 2013/C 205/05), which are not eligible to participate in any capacity.
Yes

By ticking this box, you declare that all the information provided in this form is factually correct, that you assume sole liability in the event of a claim relating to the activities carried out in the framework of the contest, that the proposed project has not been proposed for the New European Bauhaus Prizes in any other category or strand and that it has not been subject to any type of investigation, which could lead to a financial correction because of irregularities or fraud.
Yes

By submitting your application, you guarantee that you are the author or have the rights to proceed with the application and to authorise the use of the project and that you have obtained any necessary consents, licenses or assignments from third parties and included copyright notices when necessary.
Yes

By submitting your application, you understand that all the applications that meet the eligibility requirements will be shared for the purposes of the selection processes, and notably published on the secured platform prizes.new-european-bauhaus.eu and for the purposes of the promotion of these on the New European Bauhaus website and/or other European Commission communication channels. In this sense, the applications would be widely available. Applicants should ensure that they present their projects, in such a way that they could be shared without giving rise to intellectual property related concerns. If your submission is selected as one of the finalists, it will additionally be shared for the purpose of the public vote that will take place. The European Union is granted a licence to use and share your application with the general public and the official external experts for the purposes of the selection process, including the voting. The European Union has the right to use the images and visual materials and the description provided in the application for communication purposes related to the contest and beyond. Rights granted comprise the right to store, reproduce, display, publish and communicate or distribute copies in electronic or digital format, including, but not only, through the internet. Unless you have disclosed your name, the European Commission has no obligation to share your name when using or disseminating your contribution to the public. The European Union cannot be held responsible in case any submitted project, is found to infringe third party’s rights. The European Union shall be neither responsible for the use that third parties may do of the applications or related content.
Yes

By submitting your application, you acknowledge that you read and understand that the ‘Guide to Applicants’ of the NEB Prizes 2023, available online in the website of the NEB Prizes 2023, is an integral part of this application form and that it must therefore be observed when completing and submitting your application.
Yes