When we first got the plans for this wide spaced apartment, we were shocked. It’s two parts, east and west, are connected by an 8-meter-long bridge. Consider that “bridge” is a word that architects invented to upscale a corridor. On a high floor, with an amazing view, but at the end – a corridor.
At this point in time we had a corridor, we had the view, we had the necessary walk and we had the knowledge that this is not enough. We were looking for an experience for this connecting place. One that will envelop the walker, highlight his movements, and enhance the place.
And then, between googling and doing sketches, we met Daniel Rozin’s mechanical mirrors. An array of cameras follows the walker’s movement, with the addition of some computers, many tiny engines, each connected to a wooden chip. Every independent chip operates as a “pixel”. A chip leaning upwards gets more natural light, and a chip leaning down is left in the shade. A mirror, but a wooden one, believe it or not. A little loud, lots of movement, and mostly – reactive. Every movement on the bridge gets a feedback. The walker on the bridge is reflected in it. Walking alongside it is interactive – enhanced, amplified, sometimes even confusing – who is the source? What is the primary reason?
After we stretched this mechanic mirror all along the bridge we were enchanted. Not only can it reflect, but also it has a clear geometry. The wooden chip, leaning slightly up or down, the dynamic movements, the arrays seeming random, all that it is. We were certain it could not be left only in the corridor. It was needed for it to affect the rest of the apartment, in other places in the project. The pixels from that wooden mirror jumped and leaped to other places in the apartment. Like vines, after a few good springs, crawling up and along the walls and making it blossom. There it goes to the living room, or to the space next to it. Sometimes strong, sometimes subtle, sometimes just a hint. Sometimes you don’t need more than this.
Architects in Charge: Adi Cohen, Sapir Hiniz | Project Managment: Eran Eldor, Bar Engineering | Art, Mechanical Mirror: Daniel Rozin | Furniture: Tollmans | Flooring and Wall Covers: Absuloto | Lighting: BOOST Lighting | Kitchen: Boffi | Sanitary: Boffi, Mody