THE SKY LACE
2012 BSA Glow Competition Entry
The Sky Lace uses light and visual patterns to unify the disparate elements of Copley Square. The woven light, seemingly floating in the night sky, creates a new center for the Square. The Sky Lace is intricate and elegant, cognizant of Boston’s history, one of America’s oldest great cities. This levitating, diaphanous fabric enlivens Copley’s landmark buildings while evoking a feeling of shelter and a sense of place.
This design provides spatial definition to Copley Square, which in a very Bostonian manner, houses traditional and modern elements. The square contains mismatched elements–a ticket booth, statues, churches, skyscrapers, fast food restaurants, hotels, office buildings, a fountain, trees, public transport, parking and pedestrians.
The project seeks to unite them all with a single, simple element such as a tent or a canopy: a temporal structure that is visually light and open yet provides protection and defines the boundary. These architectural elements are associated with festivity and collectivity, which would be fitting with the publicity of Copley Square, while promoting and supporting various social gatherings and activities within the plaza .
A reticella collar in a portrait of Queen Elizabeth, 1613
Site Plan
The Sky Lace is woven ElectroLuminescent wires suspended above Copley Square.
Reticella is a needle lace dating from the 15th century and remaining popular into the first quarter of the 17th century.
A permeable low mass membrane was designed to allow the sunlight and the views of the surrounding buildings or sky, while providing visual interest, and unity. The woven surface creates a pattern of light and shadow during the day. At night, the integral artificial illumination is both functional and captivating, revealing the detail and intricacy at close proximity and announces its presence as a glowing landmark from afar.
