Giles Miller installation brightens biotech building

Giles Miller is renowned for his large-scale biophilic sculptural installations that bring together digital modelling and hand crafting. This latest piece, called Fractalism, wraps around the ground floor of the IQHQ speculative office and lab building in the Spur innovation district.   

Designed to contrast with and complement the building’s clean, straight lines, the work brings movement and texture to the streetscape. Miller explains, “The piece is positioned next to a busy railway station, so the idea is that it responds to the movement of the commuters, offering a changing visual experience as the light shifts along its textured aluminium surface. The result is a type of undulating welcoming-in of visitors.” 

Each petal is individually positioned on an aluminium frame using laser-cut ribs that ensure its precise orientation and alignment. This allows for flowing movement across the length of the mural. The studio worked with fabricators UAP to produce the piece. Aluminium was used because it is lightweight, strong and fully recyclable, and for its visually appealing anodised finish, which reflects and plays with the light. As viewers move past the piece, the variations in surface form and reflection produce subtle shifts in perception, giving a sense of movement and connection. 

Miller is interested in neuroscience, what it can teach us about what we find beautiful, and how art can promote wellbeing. Other recent installations include The Eyrie, a sculptural shelter covered with timber “leaves” at the Green Park development in Reading; and L’Envol, another kinetic mural on the Champs Elysse in Paris.

Woven, Miller’s first habitable structure, in Broadstairs, meanwhile, is a magical affair:  a house wrapped in a wonderfully elaborate black sculptural framework that also acts as a trellis for plants.