Overview
Paddington's Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation is going green with the final installation in their Fugitive Structures temporary pavilion series. Running since 2013, the series was the first of its kind in Australia to use temporary pavilions as a tool for exploring new architectural concepts. For the finale of this awesome series, SCAF has teamed up with award-winning architect Vo Trong Nghia to create Green Ladder, to be installed next month.
The pavilion structure is made entirely from bamboo, "the steel of the 21st century" according to Nghia. The temporary pavilion will be on public display at SCAF from July 7 to December 10 and aims to raise awareness of bamboo's strength as a 'green steel' building material. Green Ladder aims to resemble a dense bamboo forest and visitors will be able to move through the graceful grid at their leisure — entry is completely free.
In general, Nghia's a really switched on guy. His firm, Vo Trong Nghia Architects, has won numerous awards throughout the Asia-Pacific region. His offices are based in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City and his work philosophy includes a mandatory two hours of daily meditation for all employees, as well as frequent silent meditation retreats. Nghia's goal is to green up the urban world and bring the environment back into city life. But he has his work cut out for him, with green space at a minuscule 0.25 percent in these major Vietnamese cities of 10 million people.
In partnership with this philosophy, SCAF has organised a series of talks and events in association with Green Ladder throughout its six-month run, including meditation and yoga programs. If you want to hear from this legend directly, Nghia will give an architect's talk on Thursday, July 7 at 5pm.
Green Ladder will be on display at Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation (SCAF), 16-20 Goodhope Street, Paddington. Entry to the pavilion is free and open to the public from July 7 to December 10 on Wednesdays to Saturday, 11am to 5pm. Details available at the SCAF website.
Image: Vo Trong Nghia Architects, Green Ladder, 2016 commissioned by Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation Fugitive Structures.