INTERIOR TENSION Project: Riverchase Galleria Project brief Under the heat of the midday sun, Riverchase Galleria’s shoppers wilted from the glare and heat generated by its glass atrium. To combat this problem and reduce air conditioning costs, CHM Architects Inc. had a vision to create a shady calm from sculptural screens, suspended high above the food hall and main concourse. All the canopies would need to be installed at night when the mall was closed to the public, with the installation crew working at height from electrically powered cherry pickers. One of the advantages of using fabric on this project is that it could be attached to the building’s existing steel frame without putting too much extra load on the roof. Design solution We used a high performance PVC coated mesh glass fabric in white for the Blade Canopies, each ranging in size from 400 sq ft (50sqm) to 1200 sq ft (113sqm). Despite their huge size, the canopies were hung from the steel infrastructure by tensile wires, allowing them to float like geometric clouds and blend with the shadows from the steel atrium. When the sun goes down the canopies will be lit by moody coloured lighting changing the look and feel of the mall for its evening visitors. Fabric Architecture The art and science of tension

INTERIOR TENSION FABRIC Project: Riverchase Galleria Summary Client: Location: Fabric Type: Architect: Contractor: Photography: General Growth Properties (GGP) Birmingham, Alabama, USA Ferrari Batymesh 7000, white CHM Architects Inc Hoar Construction Brendon Pinola Photograpy For more information or to discuss how we can help you, call Gil Hird on Fabric Architecture Ltd 4 Nexus Brockworth Gloucestershire GL3 4AG +44 (0)1452 612 800 [email protected] www.fabricarchitecture.com Company registered in England No. 04119655