The Las Palmas Water Theatre by Grimshaw was based on the biomimetic design principle of mimicking process - in this case the way in which the Namibian fog-basking beetle has evolved a way to create its own fresh water in a desert.

This scheme employed similar ingenuity to take advantage of the sunny conditions, steady wind direction and cold seawater to create large amounts of desalinated water for the town of Las Palmas. The evaporators and condensers which are the basis of this technology were arranged to create a back-drop to an outdoor amphitheatre. What might normally have been a mundane piece of infrastructure is elevated to the level of sculpture.

 

Architect 
Grimshaw  Neven Sidor, lead designer
Ingrid Bille, Nick Grimshaw, Michael Pawlyn