bam! studio wins MAXXI young architects program 2013

‘He’ by bam! studio, rome, italy
all images © bam! studio

named after the chemical formula for helium, bam! studio‘s ‘He’ will soon be floating over the MAXXI museum‘s plaza in rome.
the young architects program, now reincarnated in rome for its third year, proposes to promote and support fledgling firms by financing a large scale
temporary installation in the outdoor space of the MAXXI museum. the program was transplanted from a still-successful competition in MoMA PS1 of new york
and has further incorporated constructo of santiago chile and, for the first time this year, istanbul modern of turkey. this ever-expanding network of museums
contributes to the central mission of the competition, which lends great visibility to young firms. an international jury chose bam! studio’s proposal for
a buoyant, yet interactive, architecture, set to create shade and plays of water during the summer months in a greened MAXXI piazza. iconic in scale,
‘He’ is to glow at night and blithely interact with the roman skyline. although a lantern by night, the aerostatic prism strives to be a model of
grandiose sustainability both in it’s daytime function as a weightless water-dripping curtain wall and long after it’s deinstallation, when the helium
recovered from deflation will be used in scientific and medical research. their bold design posits that singular, construction-free architecture can free
horizontal structures and make space for people, while simultaneously creating a complex material encounter with the zaha hadid masterpiece.
bam! bottega di architettura metropolitana is comprised of an young group of turinese architects rapidly creating a practice engaged in
poetry, technology, sustainability and public space. 

the flexible, hovering structure makes space for large areas of rest and play 

a proposes seating area under the shade of the balloon and additionally creates a water-wall to cool visitors in the summer months

model: aerial view

site plan

elevation

concept diagram

uses of He