Wissengewächs

© 2007, Laurent MIGNONNEAU & Christa SOMMERER

interactive facade with 16 screens reacting to passerby’s positions and movements

This interactive façade was designed by Mignonneau and Sommerer for the City of Science in Braunschweig, Germany, which is the City of Science in 2007. A 6 x 6 meters glass house placed in the very city center, the Dom Platz, hosts an exchange library where citizens of Braunschweig can exchange their books for general books on science, aiming to engage citizens more to the City of Science. The outside surface of the glasshouse is equipped with 16 interactive screens designed and equipped with sensors designed and produced by French/Austrian artist duo Laurent Mignonneau and Christa Sommerer. Sensors measure the passerby’s presence and movements and a specially designed growth software relates these movements to the growth of artificial plans on the screens. When passerby’s walk by, they grow a continually developing and always different garden that reflects their involvement with the façade and eventually leads to more involvement with the exchange library and the concept of growing knowledge. The German title “Wissensgewächs” literarily means Growth of Knowledge.

Curators and concept for the glass house: Dr. Anja Hesse, Culture Department of Braunschweig; Dr. Müller-Pietralla, Zukunftsforschung Volkswagen, Germany