With Metropol Parasol, J. MAYER H. Architects have created a new landmark for the city of Seville. The design by the architectural office received first prize in the competition for the redevelopment of the Plaza de la Encarnación at the center of the medieval district of the capital of Andalusia. Metropol Parasol has the potential to turn the Plaza into a new, contemporary urban center in a quarter that was long neglected. The building complex, with its large, parasol-like structures, contains a museum featuring archeological finds in the basement; an indoor market on the ground floor; an elevated square for events, bars, restaurants; and a panoramic walkway on the roof of the parasol. The multifunctional Metropol Parasol signals an initial step in the dynamic development of cultural and commercial facilities at the heart of Seville.

Innovative designers are creating compelling atmospheres and interactive experiences by merging hardware and software with architecture and design.

Today’s designers are creating compelling atmospheres and interactive experiences by merging hardware and software with architecture and design. This book is a collection of this innovative work produced where virtual realms meet the real world and where dataflow confronts the human senses. It presents an international spectrum of interdisciplinary projects at the intersection of laboratory, trade show, and urban space that play with the new frontiers of perception, interaction, and staging created by current technology. The work reveals how technology is fundamentally changing and expanding strategies for the targeted use of architecture, art, communication, and design for the future.