EPFL ECAL lab and ALICE studio develop porte des savoirs in lausanne

‘porte des savoirs’ by EPFL+ECAL LAB & ALICE studio EPFL, lausanne, switzerland
image © joel tettamanti
all images courtesy of EPFL+ECAL LAB / ALICE studio EPFL

in beginning the project, the architects at EPFL ECAL lab and ALICE studio set out to develop the possibility of full immersion into an inherently intellectual or non-physical idea, in this case the reading of text. the project’s location at the subway entrance in the outskirts of lausanne also challenges the visitor’s notion of the urban city environment at a station that is still in a rather rural area. with the use of mirrors and other reflective surfaces on the floor, walls and ceiling, the rectangular volume is transformed into a boundary-less capsule animated by a constantly streaming flow of information. the visitor is then physically placed within this digital world of kinetic lexicon enhanced by reflection and the use of innovative technological application. apart from the information communicated by the screens, the scale and speed at which letters and words circulate are also fundamental to the creation of a layered digital landscape.

a strip down the center of the subway terminal entrance greets visitors with moving text
image © joel tettamanti

image © joel tettamanti

image © joel tettamanti

a matrix of LED light strips  under translucent panels illuminate the moving text
image © joel tettamanti

view from the exterior
image © joel tettamanti

image © joel tettamanti

test of a panel
image © EPFL+ECAL LAB / ALICE Studio EPFL

tests with reflection
image © EPFL+ECAL LAB / ALICE Studio EPFL

RGB LED strips
image © EPFL+ECAL LAB / ALICE Studio EPFL

construction of the space
image © EPFL+ECAL LAB / ALICE Studio EPFL

image © EPFL+ECAL LAB / ALICE Studio EPFL

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project info:

architect: dieter dietz, rudi nieveen, guillaume othenin-girard, alice epfl
interaction design: nicolas henchoz, thibault brevet, epfl+ecal lab
client: vaudoise insurance