Essential Machines: Kinetic Architecture and the Human Experience

When thinking about contemporary machinic architecture, often one imagines the sort of buildings that might be described as high‐tech: full of ductwork, hydraulic struts, pistons, and sleek, metallic, shiny carapaces. Yet there are other ways to invoke the machine in more human‐friendly manifestations. Tom Kundig and his design practice Olson Kundig have spent much of their time exploring age‐old technologies – the hinge, the wheel and the pulley, for example – to create architecture that does not alienate people, but instead engages and facilitates them in transformational, spatial activities.