AA3DS5 // HIGH WIRE

High wire was founded on the recent circumstances the pandemic has had on the circus industry. The circuses have been relocated onto the French canals and travel around the country. The brief was split into two distinct phases; firstly to convert a split barge into a travelling home for the performers and crew as well as being a performance stage for the high wire act. As well as the barge design the circus company required and outdoor seating structure. Due to the nature of the performance this had to be a tensegrity structure. My project takes place on the Rhone in Avignon and this proved a fantastic backdrop and context for the project.

In more detail the second phase of the project required a demountable three storey structure above a tow-path. Due to the location of my project I was inspired by the Palais des Papes and reinterpreted the medieval Gothic building technique in a new material and context. The glulam frame is a series of unfolded arches. The arches appear amongst the project in the floor structure and in layers in section. The project included a secondary tensegrity structure in the roof for performances as well as pod accommodation for 15 performers, a physio spa and living accommodation.

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