SOLEIL-S, second Solar Biennale at mudac – All photos are by Cynthia Ammann.
Design. From the spring equinox to the autumn equinox of 2025, March 21 to September 21, mudac, the Museum of Contemporary Design and Applied Arts, in Lausanne, Switzerland, presents SOLEIL-S, the second Solar Biennale. Through innovative design and research, the event encourages visitors to delve into solar energy’s profound social, political, and aesthetic aspects. By showcasing design’s power to accelerate change, Soleil-s invites professionals and the public to embrace the Solar Movement, a groundbreaking initiative dedicated to making solar energy the default power source by combining innovative design, technology, material research, and advocacy.
“The Solar Movement is meant to span the world, connecting all people and disciplines, and it is inspiring to see how a new context and team approach it,” explain Marjan van Aubel and Pauline van Dongen, founders of the movement. A key feature of Soleil-s is the introduction of several innovative projects that expand the horizons of solar design, storytelling, and material usage innovation.
TAKK studio developed a two-meter-diameter sphere that replicates the environmental conditions expected in 2070 for a plot of land under the Fellaria glacier in northern Italy. The installation merges technology and ecology, prompting a reflection on whether to mourn the glacier’s disappearance or welcome the meadow that may take its place.
Drawing inspiration from tree growth, Mischer’traxler has developed a solar-powered machine that creates one piece per day. The prevailing weather and the seasonal quality of light influence the design and colour of each piece.
Nathanaël Abeille developed a collection of reflective devices designed to redirect sunlight from bright areas into darker environments, whether in urban settings or homes. Constructed from glass, ceramic, and metal, these installations enhance spatial experiences, envisioning a future where buildings and interiors light up one another with poetic sunlight reflections.
By leveraging computational design and bio-catalytic energy networks, ecoLogicStudio envisions a future city where architecture seamlessly combines with living systems, utilising algae and cyanobacteria to absorb carbon and produce energy.
Alice Bucknell’s Staring at the Sun is a 3D science fiction documentary that merges fact and fiction, exploring the dark side of solar geoengineering and the paradoxes of climate control. BADDANCE WITH THEBADWEEDS, presented by Rocio Berenguer, is an interactive installation inviting visitors to transform into hybrid human-plant beings, reflecting ecological and queer transitions through dance and immersive storytelling.
Soleil·s ALSO integrates recent projects by world-renowned artists, designers, and collectives, including Ólafur Elíasson, Liam Young, Andreas Gursky, DISNOVATION.ORG, and academic institutions such as EPFL, HEAD, and ECAL.
All photos are by Cynthia Ammann, courtesy of SOLEIL-S.
