The Institut du Monde Arabe (IMA) functions devoted to the relationship of Arab culture with France. Nouvel produces a wonderfully minimal composition of forms: a gently curving wall to the north facing the Seine comes to a sharp and deep cleft as it meets a rectilinear block which faces a large open plaza and the university buildings to the south.
Jean Nouvel, who is widely known for his particular surface treatment with “smart” materials, and with this kinetic facade for the Arab World Institute, he designed a facade who responds to changing environments. To achieve this, the south facade of the building consists of high-tech photosensitive mechanical devices which control the light levels and transparency. It interprets traditional wooden Arab latticework screens into a glass and steel construction with 30,000 light-sensitive diaphragms on 1600 elements, which operate like a lens of a camera. The changes to the irises are revealed internally far more than what can be observed from the exterior.
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