Kengo Kuma’s new sculpture can absorb 90,000 cars worth of pollution

Kengo Kuma’s new sculptural work of art does more than look pretty—it cleans air, too. With “Breath/ng,” the Japanese architect uses nearly 1,900 square feet of air-purifying fabric to craft an intricate, origami sculpture.

Luke Hayes via Designboom

The piece, which was created for Milan Design Week this year, is comprised of 120 hand-folded panels that twist and spiral into a hovering form. The 20-foot-tall work hangs from the ceiling like a giant mobile and is suspended by a single carbon fiber rod.

Kuma worked with 3D modeling company Dassault Systems to design the piece in 3D software. “Breath/ng’s” complex folds are then held in place by a series of 46 3D-printed joints.

Luke Hayes via Designboom

According to Anemotech, the company that makes the “Breath Technology” fabric, the sculpture is able to absorb 90,000 cars worth of pollution thanks to the fabric’s molecule activated core that separates and absorbs pollutants like nitrogen oxides and sulfur oxides.

This isn’t the first piece of art that straddles the line between practical purifier and sculpture—and we hope it’s not the last.

Via: Designboom