prototype 2030 proposes to transform wind turbines into iconic landmarks

with the aim of highlighting the amazing and sustainable power of wind energy, prototype 2030 presents two projects that show how design can play a vital role in the fight against climate change. titled ‘windwords’ and ‘windswitch’, the team has reconsidered the aesthetic and acoustic qualities of the structures to envision a landscape that is improved, and not blemished by the turbines, therefore engendering public support for the future of wind power and effectively transforming them into iconic landmarks. 

all images courtesy of prototype 2030

when a new bridge is built, urbanists, architects and artists are consulted – besides the engineers and accountants. neighborhoods are involved and competitions are held. with this project, prototype 2030 asks: why do we treat energy farms differently? windwords gives a first taste of what can be done, following in the footsteps of the hollywood sign or the iamsterdam letters – ‘capitalizing’ on the graphical potential of turbines’ vertical lines, without changing any of their technology.

wind turbines and certainly wind farms are among mankind’s largest constructions. with limited changes to their structure, focusing on their aesthetic function while making careful landscaping choices, the design team propose to turn them into iconic landmarks that will draw visitors rather than protesters.

every site and community is different and will present different needs and opportunities and big pink words will not be the solution every time. in essence, prototype 2030 suggests that wind farms must be designed to mean something to humans, or in other words, they need to be designed to ‘speak human’.

aesthetic improvements might alter some of the public’s view on wind turbines, but they probably won’t take away all the concerns of those who live next to them. noise (in various forms, from blade movements and transmission) and shadow flicker (fast moving shadows from blades moving in front of the sun) can be create disturbances, and feel worse when nearby residents have zero control over them.

the windswitch app therefore takes two principles as a starting point: that those who are affected by the siting of a wind farm should be allowed to share in the profits; and that they should be able to interact with the farm and even influence the turbines ‘in their backyard’. in their proposal, windfarm neighbors share in profits based on distance and position of their houses relative to the turbines. the app shows how much profit they share in at any time – basically, more wind, more profit.

but what if you have a headache, and turbine noise is making it worse? or you’re having a barbecue, and shadow flicker is spoiling the party? windswitch allows users to utilize previous earnings as credits to put the likely culprits on pause. the wind farm next door acts like a good neighbor – it helps when it can, and when there is trouble, it listens. in the simplest terms, windswitch allows a neighborhood to profit from the nearby windfarm and to pause the turbines that disturb them.

project info:

project name: ‘windwords’ and ‘windswitch’ 

project type: concept

design: prototype 2030

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: lynne myers | designboom