The Dance of the Jellyfish
The initial concept for the Montreal Olympic facilities incorporated elements of biomimicry from the very beginning. The architect, Mr. Roger Taillibert, drew inspiration from marine organisms such as trilobites, diatoms, and seashells in designing the landscape (e.g., the esplanade) and the building structures (e.g., the stadium, the velodrome). The stadium hosted a variety of events, many of which were sporting events. Building on these ideas, the project involves integrating lightweight structures into Lafond Park, located near the stadium, to protect spectators and aspiring athletes from weather changes. These structures represent ctenophores, marine organisms found in the St. Lawrence River that emit pulsating light through bioluminescence and are a source of wonder. We imagined them emerging from the river, floating through the city, and gathering near the sports facilities in a slow, poetic dance. Although ctenophores are not jellyfish, we titled our work: THE DANCE OF THE JELLYFISH so that people could better grasp the image without being tripped up by the much less familiar word "ctenophore."
Ctenophores resemble elongated, translucent, luminous balloons, which we have represented using volumes of fabric stretched over lightweight tensegrity structures (a tension-compression principle currently used in the stadium roof). These are supported by a rigid conical steel frame (moment frame) that also resists lateral forces induced by wind loads. Lighting effects will be produced using strips of flexible lighting fixtures equipped with RGB LEDs. These devices allow for segmented control every 100 mm or less, using the DMX protocol with small standalone controllers.
Our intention is to salvage as many elements as possible, cut them, and reassemble them (e.g., welding, salvaging round HSS sections and cables to transform them into connecting rods and tendons for a tensegrity structure). As we progressed in our analysis, we identified several unknowns that could affect the project's feasibility and require in-depth validation.
This eco-friendly project aims not only to create protective structures but also to establish iconic and unifying spaces, allowing various events to take place in a dynamic environment connected to its context, in memory of the Olympic Stadium.
(From competitor's text)
(Unofficial automated translation)
