I talk with Denis Blount in this episode about the Amazon Spheres Understory, located in Seattle, WA. Understory is a separate studio/exhibition space located in the ground level of the Amazon Spheres, which, as the name implies, is a series of spherical buildings framed out of steel and clad with glass.  The Amazon Spheres opened in January 2018, serves as a collaborative workspace for Amazon employees and is filled with over 40,000 plants.  The building focuses on biophilic design, art, technology, engineering and design. 

Understory presented several acoustical challenges that Denis and his team needed to solve, including a circular layout and several hard surfaces throughout.  Denis and his team were able to virtually simulate the listening experience of Understory in private listening sessions in Arup’s Soundlab prior to construction so that the design team could determine the best sound quality for the space.  Denis is an associate principal with Arup in Seattle, WA. 

https://www.arup.com/perspectives/soundlab

https://www.seattlespheres.com/visit-understory

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