Late night ponderings

The next step is determining methods of energy production in the chosen sites. I've been researching methods of renewable energy and the processes that are required to generate electricity from these methods. Depending on the requirements, different methods of production can be applied to different sites, as all of the construction sites are in various stages of completion.

Formal installations will incorporate the energy production methods in each site, but the network connection remains undecided. Is it a physical connection or simply implied by some coordination in the design of the installations? If this is the case, how do the sites pool their electricity into a network? More underground connections? Most likely not, since the logical action would then be to connect to the existing power grid - thus entirely eliminating the idea of the new network. There must be physical connections in order for energy to be exchanged, but what does that mean formally?

The level of human involvement is another issue to be considered. To what extent are these installations self sustaining? Something as simple as the addition of solar panels would collect energy, but that could easily go unnoticed. It would be interesting to explore the potential for creating spaces based on properties of the energy production method. The installation does not need to be dramatic or invasive, but it does need to alter the appearance of the site in a way that inspires curiosity and a desire to explore the site instead of avoiding it.

Continuing the example of solar panels, cladding portions of the site with panels set at different depths and angles would redefine the edge conditions of the site, potentially giving the site the appearance of movement, a change in scale and perspective, the reflectance of light, and other such properties. The panels could respond to the motion of pedestrians walking by, causing unintentional interaction with the installation, and also creating a different surface each time someone passes by. The more variables that are added the more the site can be manipulated.

That doesn't necessarily create space, but as a way of linking the sites, elements of the faceted vertical surface can appear in other installations, maybe in manipulations of the ground or roof planes, or as a texture. Similarities in the design can create visual connections that imply the connections that are not seen if the network becomes invisible.

There is a lot to consider. I'm not sure how to arrive at a conclusion for a physical representation. The only way to proceed is to just throw something in the site and see how it works with the surrounding area and with the other sites where potential connection points will be made. Then at the very least it will be something to work with.