While the entirety of Denver’s Wells Fargo Center may have just completed a three-year renovation process, it is the 86-foot floor-to-ceiling digital installation in the lobby that is getting all the attention. Five thin LED columns with screen resolutions that are six times that of normal HD are bringing life to the previously somber lobby of the building originally designed by Philip Johnson.
The five screens, when viewed together, create one cohesive canvas that alternates between artistic and conceptual images such as colorful swirling ink drops or realistic depictions of the surrounding Colorado landscape. A grove of trees rises 86-feet into the air and slowly sways in the breeze, changing with the time of day and the time of season; a flock of birds, animated in real-time, can fly across the screens for hours and never repeat the same flight pattern; and mountainscapes created from thousands of Instagram photos provide different viewing experiences depending on your proximity to the screens. The installation can serve a practical purpose, as well, such as displaying the five-day weather outlook.
The main goal was for the screens to feel like a giant window to the outside, according to Ed Purver, Senior Immersive Designer at ESI Design. The installation is visible from outside through the glass atrium and is quickly becoming a new tourist attraction in the city of Denver.
The lobby also underwent changes to make it more modern, social, and comfortable. New works of art, commissioned specifically for the site, furniture, and lighting were added in an effort to keep the original Philip Johnson aesthetic alive while giving the space a more modern feel.
You can view images of the display and a video below.
Photo Courtesy of ESI Design
Photo Courtesy of ESI Design
Photo Courtesy of ESI Design
Wells Fargo Center, Denver, by ESI Design from ESI Design on Vimeo.
Related Stories
| Apr 16, 2012
University of Michigan study seeks to create efficient building design
The result, the researchers say, could be technologies capable of cutting the carbon footprint created by the huge power demands buildings place on the nation’s electrical grid.
| Apr 16, 2012
Drake joins EYP as science and technology project executive
Drake’s more than 30 years of diversified design and project delivery experience spans a broad range of complex building types.
| Apr 13, 2012
Best Commercial Modular Buildings Recognized
Judges scored building entries on a number of criteria including architectural excellence, technical innovation, cost effectiveness, energy efficiency, and calendar days to complete, while marketing pieces were judged on strategy, implementation, and quantifiable results. Read More
| Apr 6, 2012
Flat tower green building concept the un-skycraper
A team of French designers unveil the “Flat Tower” design, a second place winner in the 2011 eVolo skyscraper competition.
| Apr 2, 2012
EB-5 investment funds new Miramar, Fla. business complex
Riviera Point Holdings breaks ground on $17 million office center.
| Mar 28, 2012
Milestone reached for LEED-certified buildings?
Total number of major global green buildings now stands at 12,000.
| Mar 27, 2012
Bank of America Plaza becomes Atlanta's priciest repo
Repo will help reset market prices for real estate, and the eventual new owner will likely set rental rates at a new or near the bottom and improve the facilities to lure tenants.
| Mar 26, 2012
McCarthy tops off Math and Science Building at San Diego Mesa College
Designed by Architects | Delawie Wilkes Rodrigues Barker, the new San Diego Mesa College Math and Science Building will provide new educational space for students pursuing degree and certificate programs in biology, chemistry, physical sciences and mathematics.
| Mar 26, 2012
Ball State University completes nation's largest ground-source geothermal system
Ball State's geothermal system will replace four aging coal-fired boilers to provide renewable power that will heat and cool 47 university buildings, representing 5.5-million-sf on the 660-acre campus.
| Mar 21, 2012
10 common data center surprises
Technologies and best practices provide path for better preparation.