Details: Pleated Inflation is the name of a permanent informal amphitheater in Argeles, France designed by architect Marc Fornes of THEVERYMANY. The lightweight, selfsupporting structure is composed of 990 3mm aluminum shingles, each overlapping its neighbor to form tangential continuity and rigidity.

Says the architect, “A playful dialogue between lightness and boldness characterizes Pleated Inflation… Bringing together structural performance and spatial experience, the permanent installation immerses students of Lycee Christian Bourquin in ornate shadows cast from porous structural pleats.”

The permanent installation was commissioned by Region Languedoc Roussillon, as part of the French 1% Artistique program.

Pleated Inflation adds to Marc Fornes / THEVERYMANY’s ‘structural shingle’ project family, the studio’s unique body of research into lightweight, selfsupporting systems that unify skin, structure, ornamentation and spatial experience.

“The design was developed through custom computational protocols of structural formfinding, descriptive geometry, and stress flowdriven porosity. A 2D network of lines as a footprint inflates and expands in the air, resulting in a voluminous space created with minimal lightweight material.”

“Once inflated, the design is tessellated through a process of agentbased porosity, articulating a continuous ‘pleated’ surface of 990 intricate aluminum shingles, each pleat lends structural depth, thinning the required profile of each panel. The skin meets the ground on 26 base plates. Following digital fabrication, the parts were installed over the course of ten days by a team of four.”

Project data: Location: Lycee Christian Bourquin, ArgelesSurMer, France | Media: 3mm aluminum, thermolaquage | Dimensions: 21′ H x 46′ W x 33′ D | Commissioned by: Region Languedoc Roussillon.