The London Design Festival launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise money for one of the craziest mini-golf courses ever made.
The plan is to turn London’s Trafalgar Square into a colorful course this September. Notable designers, including Tom Dixon, Mark Wallinger, and the late Zaha Hadid, each get to create a hole of their own.
Eight holes have been designed for the mini-golf (known in the UK as "crazy golf") course, and they all feature much more than a windmill and a turf incline. Dixon’s hole integrates pneumatic tubes; players must navigate Wallinger’s circular maze; and Hadid designed a curvy, dual-level hole that traces the shadow of the square’s Nelson’s Column. The entries are bright, creative, and, to many putt-putt golfers across the universe, at least a quadruple bogey.
Paul Smith is the project’s visionary. The architect has held other events at Trafalgar Square over the years, including life-size chess and a robot show. Smith’s hole calls for a set of 10 multicolored stairways. The other designers who took part in the project are Camille Walala, Atelier Bow-Wow, HAT Projects, NEON, and Ordinary Architecture, the latter of which envisioned a hole where a player hits their ball into a large pigeon and watches it roll through its digestive tracks.
The project’s goal is to amuse both adults and children, and teach the public about the future of design.
The course “will attract a wide, public audience, and inspire the next generation of creatives,” as its Kickstarter puts it. “Thousands will be able to play the course, and millions more will watch and enjoy this experience, both in the square and through media.”
A little more than $5,000 has been raised thus far. There are still 42 days left to reach the $172,862 goal.
Related Stories
| Jan 15, 2014
6 social media skills every leader needs
The social media revolution—which is less than a decade old—has created a dilemma for senior executives. While its potential seems immense, the inherent risks create uncertainty and unease.
| Jan 15, 2014
Report: 32 U.S. buildings have been verified as net-zero energy performers
The New Buildings Institute's 2014 Getting to Zero Status report includes an interactive map detailing the net-zero energy buildings that have been verified by NBI.
| Jan 14, 2014
Sherwin-Williams unveils colormix 2014
Drawing influence from fashion, science, nature, pop culture and global traditions, Sherwin-Williams introduces colormix™ 2014, which captures colors that inspire creativity and design in today’s world. The four-palette collection provides design professionals with a guide to help them define the moods they want to create and select colors for their projects.
| Jan 13, 2014
Custom exterior fabricator A. Zahner unveils free façade design software for architects
The web-based tool uses the company's factory floor like "a massive rapid prototype machine,” allowing designers to manipulate designs on the fly based on cost and other factors, according to CEO/President Bill Zahner.
| Jan 13, 2014
AEC professionals weigh in on school security
An exclusive survey reveals that Building Teams are doing their part to make the nation’s schools safer in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook tragedy.
| Jan 13, 2014
6 legislative actions to ignite the construction economy
The American Institute of Architects announced its “punch list” for Congress that, if completed, will ignite the construction economy by spurring much needed improvements in energy efficiency, infrastructure, and resiliency, and create jobs for small business.
| Jan 12, 2014
CES showcases innovations: Can any of these help you do your job better?
The Consumer Electronics Show took place this past week in Las Vegas. Known for launching new products and technologies, many of the products showcased there set the bar for future innovators. The show also signals trends to watch in technology applicable to the design and building industry.
| Jan 12, 2014
The ‘fuzz factor’ in engineering: when continuous improvement is neither
The biggest threat to human life in a building isn’t the potential of natural disasters, but the threat of human error. I believe it’s a reality that increases in probability every time a code or standard change is proposed.
| Jan 12, 2014
5 ways virtual modeling can improve facilities management
Improved space management, streamlined maintenance, and economical retrofits are among the ways building owners and facility managers can benefit from building information modeling.
| Jan 11, 2014
Getting to net-zero energy with brick masonry construction [AIA course]
When targeting net-zero energy performance, AEC professionals are advised to tackle energy demand first. This AIA course covers brick masonry's role in reducing energy consumption in buildings.