When I joined the project, Michael Loverich and Antonio Torres’s design for the pavilion had already made it through the first stage of review.  The review committee wanted more clarity about how the project would work structurally before the final judgement.  In response to that feedback, I joined the team to create a physical model that would replicate both the tone of the project as well as the structural challenges. I used a 3D printed form to create a mold and from that mold I created the light and pliable foam “Bups”.  I used wax tubes for the soil berms and scenic grass and butterflies for pizzazz. 

Project Description from Bittertang Farm
Erected in the courtyard of Liggett Hall during Governors Island’s summer festivities, Burble Bup will be a secret hideout that lures people into its soft and magical interior through the use of a colorfully inflatable roof. Here they are enticed to stay, lounging and mingling within Burble Bup’s earthen walls, laying down and feeling comfortable underneath constantly shifting colored light. The pavilion isn’t a space of circulation but of rest and social interaction.

The dome is made from individual custom designed inflatable components (Bups) with a unique morphology that allows them to be connected together in a variety of ways. Their articulated, bloated and textured limbs provide a sticky connection point to join with a neighboring Bup. The ground portion of the pavilion is composed of soil berms that form a visual and acoustical boundary for the pavilion’s interior where public performances as well as private small talk can be enjoyed.

The non-toxic inflatables will be reused as floating toys at various NYC pools after the summer season ends. The fabric used for the soil tubes will be composted. The Pampas Grass and soil filling the tubes will be distributed to other landscape projects on the island. All of the materials were chosen for their ability to enhance our surroundings after their deployment in the pavilion.