Chinatown kiosk | Frost Design

We were briefed to reconfigure an existing seating pagoda into an Information Kiosk in Chinatown, we wanted to create a piece of architecture which has longevity and resonates with the local Chinese community. As lead consultant we partnered with Lacoste + Stevenson and a team consisting of Lighting, Art & Science, Simpson Design Associates, Philip Chun, Morris Goding and Growthbuilt to design and build the kiosk. This project was the winner of the Small Project Architecture Award, NSW Architecture Awards 2012. Our design approach was inspired by the beauty of the traditional Chinese lanterns, we worked closely with Pamela Mei-Leng See, an artist specializing in paper cut works, to create a stunning paper cut design for the 6 x 230kg curved walls that encased the kiosk. The paper-cut design represents the residual chrysanthemum flowers in a ceramic vessel after the tea has been steeped and poured, and the ceramic pattern underneath the flowers is intended to bring prosperity (fish) and longevity (stork). At night the pattern is backlit by 4000 hand placed LED lights creating a mesmerizing glowing beacon, reminiscent of the illuminated red lanterns. Other facts and materials: • 6 x 230 Kg curved glazed doors. Three fixed doors on a 2460 diameter track encased by three moving doors on a 2730 diameter circular track. • Proprietary metal finish to achieve a permanent pattern on the external glazed surface. The pattern is etched onto the front face and then reverse applied to the glass by vinyl. The liquid metal finish is applied and fired onto the 10mm toughened glass – removing the vinyl pattern reveals the permanent clear spaces that form the pattern. Supplied by Axolyl • 0ver 4000 hand placed LED units applied to the rear face of the pattern bounces light off a red rear/side panels creating a depth of field that is hard to discern the boundaries off.