Location: Borkovická Blata, CZ
Investor: South Bohemian Region
Height: 21 m
Visualisations: Lumion 8.5

The Changeling Tower

The air is filled with peat moss, mist rises through the forest and in a distance the tower ripples in the wind. It ripples and glistens as some microscopic organism, made large in an experiment that's gone wrong. As if it just grew up here one day. Whenever sun shines down on it, tiny shimmering lights appear at the ends of its many hairs. It's different each time. The locals call it The Changeling. It has its prototype in algae, insects and the abundant mycoflora that inhabits the local bogs.

Twenty meters tall, the tower consists of rational steel structure, which is covered by a bionic veil. The façade, steel net with thousands of tentacles attached, gives the tower a strangely immaterial aura. Each tentacle - a thin carbon fiber rod - features a tiny mirror-like peace of metal at the end of it. These reflect the sun and, swaying in the wind, throw little reflections around the area. In this way the visitor first experiences a sense of mystery as they approach the tower, understanding of the principle as they enter and ascend and finally a sense of harmony when they stand atop the tower and behold the landscape over the treetops.

Shapeshifting is the core motive of the tower. Just as the local landscape changes with seasons, weather and time of day, so does the tower. It looks different in the rain, different yet at a summer noon. The fog conceals the little mirrors, sunset makes them glow like gold. This nature of variation creates in one a wish to come back - and to experience the tower in a different mood.

Structure of the tower is a subtle steel frame assembled of pre-welded components. Those can be easily transported to location and assembled with relative ease.

The double helix of stairs solidifies the tower and allows for a smooth flow of visitors in both directions. Therefore there's no traffic problems, should two groups meet at the tower.

The façade is a net of thin steel ropes stretched onto the loadbearing structure. Simple metal connecters attach carbon-fiber sticks with mirrors to the net. Materiality of both structure and the tentacles provides longevity and low maintenance of the tower.

Structurally the tower is designed as two tubes, inner and outter, connected and cross-braced with metal rods and the staircases. We propose the foundation as deep, large-radius piles fixed into the bedrock circa 5 to 6 meters below ground. In the upper part the piles will be mutually connected by a concrete grate and desk. Geological conditions practically prevent using any other foundation system.