Australian architect Sophie Cleland decided to create a blue whirlwind on a red earth – Wanangkura Stadium. Its pixel-like panels transform the Port Hedland’s contrasts: extreme temperatures, empty deserts and green oases, endless territories, ocean and sky. The project was shortlisted for World Architecture Festival 2013.
3995 giant square panels of different sizes in bright blue and black create unique look on the walls of the stadium. Its name, Wanangkura comes from the local Kariyarra language and means “whirlwind”. The panels are steel mixed with carbon. Façade also hides built-in LEDs that create a glowing as well as pixel-like image during a night.
Sophie Cleland likened the stadium to a cyclonic pattern, creating a “shimmering, rippling effect on an otherwise flat landscape”, a natural phenomenon common in this land. The outside passage surrounding the stadium is a vital part of a building, thanks to its roof made of the square pixels in bright orange.
4500m² of Wanangkura Stadium accommodate one full sized indoor show court for basketball and netball and includes two volleyball, futsal (indoor soccer), two mini basketball courts and four badminton with fixed and retractable seating for 404 people. It is a part of a recreational area that also includes outdoor courts and landscaped park.
Sept. 23, 2013
Pforzheim University
Harrington College of Design
British Higher School of Art and Design
Design Academy Eindhoven
LOFT 42
Red Dot design award
