It's July, which means the London 2012 Summer Games are less than a month away. For the average world citizen, that means simply clearing a little time in his or her schedule to cheer on their country. For BMW and Serie Architects, it means overseeing the finishing touches on a massive pavilion that includes an integrated waterfall.
BMW is a sponsor of the London Olympics and has been quite busy preparing for the games. Last month, the luxury automaker debuted the first of its new "i" stores on Park Lane in the host city. Meanwhile, BMW's British marque MINI has released a special edition Rocketman and a whimsical video called "The Britalian Job" in anticipation of the Olympics.
The BMW Olympic Pavilion sits between the Olympic Stadium and Aquatics Centre
By far BMW's most visible move for the Olympic Games, however, is the company's Olympic Pavilion, which rises above the Waterworks River between the Olympic Stadium and Aquatics Centre. More than just a location, the riverside setting is fundamental to the pavilion's design. In what it calls "liquid architecture," Serie Architects turns the lower of the pavilion's two floors into a living structure defined by cycled river water. The water enshrouds exhibits and visitors in thin, ethereal walls rife with movement, noise and flux. Besides delivering a defining architectural element, the water serves to cool visitors, offering a sustainable, low-impact form of air conditioning
Serie explains that the pavilion is inspired by Victorian summer bandstands, which used simple forms and stripped down designs to minimize the separation between man and nature. The river-cycled waterfall walls are the boldest elements used in blending the pavilion with its natural surroundings, and Serie keeps the rest of the design simple, using mathematically rooted curves and angles throughout.
With such a natural backdrop, it's only fitting that BMW uses the pavilion to showcase its greenest technologies. BMW will use the series of smaller pavilions on the upper floor to showcase its latest innovations, which will undoubtedly include the soon-to-launch i3 electric city car and i8 plug-in performance hybrid. We also imagine that BMW will have its i Pedelec folding scooter on hand.
In addition to displaying its products in dramatic fashion, BMW's role as Official Automotive Partner and tier one Olympic sponsor will entail providing around 4,000 vehicles for transporting athletes and officials. The automaker says the fleet will be based on sustainable technologies, including electric, hybrid and low-emissions diesel.
The defining feature of the BMW Olympic Pavilion is its waterfall plinth
Serie Architects says that the individual pavilions that make up the greater BMW structure will have life after the Olympics. They will travel to the British countryside and serve as a reminder of the Games and of sustainability in general.
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