Wednesday, July 28, 2010
PLASTIKI meets plastic house
Monday, July 26, 2010
re-LAVA ed: Geometries beyond the blob
http://www.sydneydesign.com.au/2010/index.php/exhibitions/re-loved-designer-stories
Sunday, July 25, 2010
LAVA on DETAIL GREEN ISSUE
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
Architektur: Vorbild Natur Tobias Wallisser studio at AKA stuttgart
Monday, July 19, 2010
Water Cube set to reopen soon with a big splash
DIGITAL ORIGAMI TIGERS on the prowl for the WWF
The giant digital origami tigers are on the prowl again. After having been adopted by the WWF, the World Wildlife Foundation, for their Year of the Tiger program, they created a roar in KL for the KL Design Week they’re have just arrived in Europe, where they will roam Berlin and Moscow before going back to Asia to Singapore for the Smart Lights Festival in September .
http://www.wwf.de/
LAVA
Laboratory for Visionary Architecture Asia Pacific
Chris Bosse Alexander Rieck Tobias Wallisser
with Niklas Muhlich
and Jarrod Lamshed
LAVA judges at World Architecture Festival Barcelona
LAVA nominated for the Iakov Chernikhov International Prize 2010
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
KL design week starts with Tiger origami launch

thanks to Izu, Juan, Suzanna and the entire KLdesignweek team, Century Logistics for freightforwarding and Jennifer Kwok customs house city of Sydney for their generous support and creativity.!!!
special thanks to WWF
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
LAVA's raises the BAR AT DESIGNEX
The Independent London April 21, 2010 "they got us under their skin"
Condom architecture
A team of Sydney-based designers are the pioneers behind an unusual proposal for encasing buildings with hi-tech sheaths. Jay Merrick unwraps 'condom architecture'
Monday, April 19, 2010
http://www.baunetz.de/meldungen/Meldungen-Architekturgespraech_mit_LAVA_in_Muenchen
Visionäre der Baukunst
Architekturgespräch mit LAVA in München
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Monday, March 22, 2010
Tigers go to Kuala Lumpur
LAVA in RIO
PR Newswire
TORONTO, March 16
Thursday, February 11, 2010
New skin for aging 60s icons
LAVA Laboratory for Visionary Architecture
Re-skin / More with less
What initially began as a speculative proposal to reshape the UTS tower on Broadway has evolved into a broader architectural idea for re-purposing inefficient or outdated buildings as an alternative to demolishing and rebuilding ( which comes with a huge financial and environmental expense) LAVA has developed a simple, cost effective and easily constructed building skin that can potentially transform the identity, sustainability and interior comfort of an existing structure such as the UTS tower.
The ‘skin’ is a translucent cocoon that can create its own ‘micro climate’. It can generate its own energy with photo-voltaic cells, could collect rain water, improve the distribution of natural daylight and it can use available convective energy to power the building’s ventilation requirements.
A pre-existing building is wrapped with three-dimensional lightweight, high performance composite mesh textile. Surface tension allows the membrane to freely stretch over a light steel frame around walls and roof elements achieving maximum visual impact with minimal material effort.
The skin with embedded LED strips could act as an intelligent media surface and be used for dynamic animation and to communicate information into the public realm – effectively integrating principles of architecture, fashion, media and communication design into a new hybrid typology.
“A re-skinned UTS Tower could be an example of sustainability, innovation, cutting edge design and creative education, without demolishing and rebuilding the 1960s icon,” says Chris Bosse, Director of LAVA. ”When it was built the Broadway tower was cutting edge, with latest building technologies and principles that have partially become obsolete.”
The reskinning technology could be easily applied to other buildings in need of a facelift such as the
The re-skin concept continues LAVA’s research into sustainable public architecture by combining lightweight contemporary materials with the latest digital fabrication technologies with the aim of achieving more (architecture) with less (material/energy/time).
All images and Photographs by LAVA
Laboratory for Visionary Architecture
Chris Bosse, Tobias Wallisser, Alexander Rieck
Niklas Muehlich, Kim Ngyuen Ngoc, Anh-Dao Trinh,
Jonas Epper Stefan Bassing, Simone Martin,
Model with the great support of:
Andrew Southwood-Jones, Catherine Zhuang, Christen Meli, Alexander Kashin
animation by LAVA feat. time-lapse by Peter Murphy
Sustainability concept: Ross Harding from Advanced Environmental.
Structural advice: Prof Max Irvine
Membrane advice: Daniel Cook, Mak Max
Giant digital origami tigers launch Chinese New Year
Two giant digital origami tigers playfully celebrate Chinese New Year on the
forecourt of Customs House, Sydney from 11 February –14 March 2010.
The crouching digital tigers combine ancient lantern making methods with
cutting edge digital design and fabrication technology, bringing east and
west together through tradition and innovation.
The big cats are a collaboration between multinational architectural
practice Laboratory for Visionary Architecture (LAVA) and Customs House
to mark the lunar year of the tiger and raise awareness about the
endangered status of tigers.
The tigers are inspired by “zhezhi”, a Chinese term for paper folding, more
popularly known by its Japanese name “origami”. Traditional Chinese
lantern makers in Sichuan province, where lantern making has been taking
place for over 800 years and local artisans were consulted.
The Chinese or Lunar New Year is the most important Chinese holiday and
starts with a Lantern Festival. The Chinese lunar astrological sign is the
metal tiger in 2010.
The tigers are the size of a boat at 2.5 metres high and 7 metres long yet
weigh only 200kgs and use fully recyclable materials, aluminium and
barrisol, a new light weight reusable stretch material. Pulsating low energy
LED lighting brings the sculptures to life.
Chris Bosse, LAVA director says: “The project continues LAVA’s mission in
lightweight structures to build MORE WITH LESS.”
“The tigers are part of an ongoing multidisciplinary program featuring
contemporary architecture, installations, photography and digital media
exhibitions in Customs House, ” said Jennifer Kwok, manager of Customs
House.
Giant digital origami tigers
11 February – 14 March 2010
Customs House
1 Alfred Street, Circular Quay, Sydney, Australia
Laboratory for Visionary Architecture Asia Pacific
Chris Bosse, Tobias Wallisser, Alexander Rieck
Niklas Muehlich, Jarrod Lamshed, Erik Escalante, Esan Rahmani,
Anh‐Dao Trinh, Jonas Epper, Stefan Bassing, Simon Wenzel, Isabel Fischer
www.l‐a‐v‐a.net
Sydney ‐ Stuttgart ‐ Abu Dhabi – Shanghai
Fabrication
Sydney Stretch Ceilings
Barissol, a new recyclable stretch material.
www.barrisolsydney.com.au
Customs House
Jennifer Kwok ‐ Manager and Producer
Vicki Matin
Jacqueline Singh
www.sydneycustomshouse.com.au
Concept
Jennifer Kwok and Chris Bosse
Friday, January 22, 2010
Giant digital origami tigers in Sydney

Giant digital origami tigers celebrate Chinese New Year at Customs House, Sydney
Two giant digital origami tigers will playfully celebrate Chinese New Year on the forecourt of Customs House, Sydney from 11 February – 14 March 2010.
Friday, January 8, 2010
masdar on deutsche welle TV


What will the city of the future look like? Carbon-neutral,no waste,no cars a city that relies entirely on solar and other renewable energy sources. This is a visionary project that is now becoming reality. In the desert of Abu Dhabi urban planners,architects and researchers are building the world's first eco city: Masdar City. ARTS.21 went to take a look.
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Monday, December 14, 2009
Thursday, December 10, 2009
LAVA at creativity world forum




Creativity World Forum 2009: Architecture professor meets acclaimed musician
Tobias Wallisser and Ken Hensley about the digital revolution in architecture and music
STUTTGART/LUDWIGSBURG – Distinguished participants from a broad range of creative
sectors will be attending the Creativity World Forum in Ludwigsburg, Germany on
the 1st and 2nd of December. As a practitioner of modern architecture, Tobias Wallisser
will be offering insights into the possibilities offered by digital technologies for new designs
and spatial concepts. In his opinion, people no longer need the same spaces they
did fifty years ago, an idea that becomes apparent in the Mercedes-Benz Museum in
Stuttgart where he acted as the project architect. Wallisser teaches digital design at the
Stuttgart State Academy of Art and Design.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009
lava in china

I've just given a lecture at the Hong Kong Chinese University and am delivering a keynote lecture about the future of sustainable architecture at the 11th CHTF, China International Forum on Energy Saving, Emission Reduction and New Energy, in Shenzhen this week.
Other speakers include Davina Jackson from Australia talking about DATA cities, China's experts and leaders in renewable technologies [solar power, wind power and emission friendly technologies] including LIU Zhijun, Minister of Railways, and directors of electric and hybrid car manufacturers.
My visit coincided with the visit of US president Obama and is amazing to see him all over the media. I am impressed that China seems to be taking climate change and carbon emission very seriously now. Chinas advancement in renewable energies, electric cars and photovoltaics is amazing.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Bosse joins Hadid, Prix and Lynn at Angewandte reviews
Saturday, November 7, 2009
LAVA in Barcelona

we are here at the World Architecture Festival in Barcelona. Yesterday LAVA presented the Masdar plaza in UAE with Gerard Evenden, director at Foster + Partners to the world architecture community. This year LAVA was on the jury with a long list of people including Kieran Long , Charles Jencks and Bjarke Ingels to award the world's best buildings. Finalists and winners in their category from Australia included McBride Charles Ryan for the Klein Bottle house; Choi Ropiha for the Times Square ticket booth; and Allan Jack and Cottier for the Berry Sports Hall.
Barcelona presented itself in the best weather!!


























