Project details

Architect/Design
Kvorning Design and Norm Architects

Location
Hardanger Fjord, Norway

Opening
2022

Solution
Kvadrat Acoustic solution integrating 800 Soft Cells panels installed across the entire interior – covering almost 800 sqm – featuring a bespoke textile.

Photography
Roel van Tour
Jonas Bjerre-Poulsen

Salmon Eye, an offshore interactive exhibition area and art installation that explores sustainable aquaculture industry, integrates a Kvadrat Acoustic solution across its interior. The venue emerges, like a glistening pebble, from the waters of Hardanger Fjord in southwest Norway.

The solution comprises Soft Cells acoustic panels that cover the ceiling and walls of the ellipsoid interior as one continuous surface. They promote aural and visual comfort and are covered in a bespoke textile, which moves from dark to light, from the base to the top of the building. The bespoke textile was designed and woven by Kvadrat's textile mill in Innvik, Norway. Furthermore, the panels seamlessly integrate openings for building services, such as sprinklers and lights.

To ensure perfectly consistent angles and a uniform 3mm gap between the panels, the Kvadrat Acoustics team created a bespoke rail-based substructure for the Salmon Eye. This bespoke element also makes it easy to maintain and demount the acoustic panels.

During the initial development phase, to guarantee all the Soft Cells acoustic panels follow the irregular structural rhythm of the building, the Kvadrat Acoustic team relied on a 3D model which employed regularly updated 3D scan data from the building site, as well as prototypes and mock-ups. This approach ultimately led to the creation of groups of repeating panel shapes in combination with 250 unique panels, each precisely following features within the building, such as around windows.

Restaurant Iris, located in the floating art installation Salmon Eye, delivers a Michelin-starred dining experience centered on sustainability and local ingredients. Designed by Norm Architects, the restaurant’s interior complements Kvorning Design's bold, ellipsoid structure. Kvadrat Acoustics’ Soft Cells panels, enhance both aural and visual comfort for dining guests. Warm materials like walnut wood, bespoke furniture, and soft lighting contrast the exterior steel architecture, creating an intimate atmosphere that invites guests to savor the beauty of their surroundings while enjoying local flavors.