[ Slade Architecture ] The Pup Tent

Slade Architecture designed the Pup Tent as a contribution to the annual auction for New York’s Design Trust for Public Space, a not-for-profit organization committed to improving New York City’s parks, plazas, streets, and public buildings.

    This piece was an exploration in materials and fabrication. An invitation from the Design Trust for Public Space to contribute a piece for their Annual Auction was the catalyst for this investigation. All of the donated pieces in the auction were made by invited artists and architects. Proceeds support the Design Trust for Public Space.

    The charge was to create a “nest”, a shelter for a living creature. The “nest” also had to fit in a taxi, so that successful bidders could take their pieces home the same evening.

    Our design, PUPTENT, is a modern indoor dog lounge.  Water-jet cut plywood pieces were laminated together to create a conical shape (e.g. – tents, teepees and dog collar cones- don’t lick your stitches). The exterior surface was sanded smooth concealing the individual layers of plywood and revealing the tectonic surface pattern of the planar plies intersecting the conical geometry. The interior maintains the original stepped plywood lamina, revealing the plywood layers and the construction/assembly.

    The design incorporates passive puppy cooling and lighting; the opening at the top facilitates air circulation using the (puppy) stack effect and provides natural ambient light!


from  contemporist