Glashütte Gernheim

Two fine glass instruments set in motion by an algorithmic composition generated with machine learning processes form the sculptural parts of the multi-sensory sound installation smart.ing bodies. They are made of quartz sand collected by artist Evelina Rajca from disappearing beaches and mountains around the world. What can be heard is the pure yet complex sound of the sand, which is constantly changing.

The composition is based in part on an Artificial Intelligence that is “smart” enough to produce only certain frequencies. It helps to avoid the destruction of the glass and the motor by sound waves or feedback.
In this way, the work refers, on the one hand, to the increasing role of new technologies in organizing, classifying, and collecting information for the construction of meaning and decision-making processes. Using sand as an essential raw material for the production of concrete, fiber optic cables, as well as computer hardware, the multisensory work opens the discourse on the finiteness of sand as a resource.

Students of architecture at the Ostwestfalen-Lippe University of Applied Sciences are developing a walk-in sculpture made of recycled glass elements for the outdoor area of the Gernheim Glassworks. Considerations of sustainability, circular economy, and digitalization are incorporated into the design of the Transparent Things project. Providing guidance are Faidra Oikonomopoulou and Telesilla Bristogianni (TU Delft), who have developed Re3 Glass, a new generation of recycled and reusable cast glass components for building.

Glass recycling is a multi-step process that is becoming increasingly important in times of resource scarcity. Faidra Oikonomopoulou and Telesilla Bristogianni have set themselves the task of developing usable elements for architectural applications. The students of TH OWL, under the direction of Prof. Michel Melenhorst, are adopting the methods of the two scientists. The Transparent Things project incorporates play with the texture of the material as well as experimentation with glass recycling processes and the specificity of the site.