Throughout history World Exhibitions have been events which showed latest inventions in technology alongside the latest expressions of art. From this perspective, the Air Tree emerges as an experimental prototype of intervention in contemporary urban public space, capable of reactivating sites and creating the conditions to empower the use of the collective space. It is conceived as a technological urban furniture, a self-sufficient climatic comfort generator, that is being used not only as a breathing space but as well interactively.
The Air Tree with its different technical layers supports multiple final configurations and a myriad of intermediate positions (opaque, translucent, transparent, bright, interactive, open, etc.). Different textiles for video projections allow an unlimited combination of scenarios adaptable to citizen needs. Its appearance can be transformed over the daily cycle, as well as monthly all through the year. By sensors it is connected in real-time with the climatic conditions of Shanghai, constantly adopting the optimal physical configuration and energy consumption to generate climatic comfort for the citizens.
Ventilation inside the Air Tree is provided through a big fan of 7.3 m diameter, suspended by a tensegrity structure in the center of the space, at a height of 11.5 m. Through a telescopic system the fan can be lowered several meters to be located closer to the people. The exact position and speed at each moment is determined according to the climatic conditions of the environment that are monitored continuously in the surroundings of the structure.
