The Zoetrope: A Glimpse into the Future of Electric Travel

Es Devlin is known for her large-scale sculptural works that fuse technology and poetry.

Using solar power and responding to the pioneering Electrical Intelligence (EQ) technology developed by Mercedes-Benz, the ZOETROPE imagines the potential for a future global network of solar-powered pavilions specific to their locations, each one acting as a unique charging station for the mind of the driver.

Mirroring a journey through the built environment of the city of Cape Town in both physical and cultural terms, ZOETROPE is constructed using only local materials and talent. It comprises a steel frame structure clad in 72 concrete panels which were made using sand sourced from the 12 filming locations and the same cement used to construct the original Silo building (which lies adjacent the pavilion).

In conceptualising the ZOETROPE pavilion, Devlin took a map of Cape Town and chose 12 points that express the geographic and demographic range of life within a 100km radius of the site - from an underwater kelp forest and rooftop football match, to choral groups and solar power installers.

The structure merges with its historic surroundings through its very DNA, as well as the geographic imagery experienced once you enter the installation. Roofed with modern solar power technology, the sculpture is completely off the grid, producing 11.4 kW of energy that powers the audiovisual equipment used inside.

“Our landscapes bear the traces of every successive historic transport system overlaid: each new mode of human connection imprints its geometry onto our planet’s geography. First it was paths traced by human feet, the location of resting places determined by levels of human endurance; then tracks from cart wheels and a network of coaching inns with stables, their frequency determined by the metabolism of a horse. Next the size of gas tanks in fossil-fuel driven cars determined the geometry of the global highway petrol station network,” explains Devlin of the concept.

The pavilion explores how the electric period in transport history will leave its mark. “Rapid advances in lithium battery technology are extending the periods of travel and diminishing the durations of charging stops at an exponential rate. How should we approach the network of electric vehicle charging stations that is set to emerge all over the globe? How should we spend our time while we wait for our electric vehicles to recharge mid journey?” asks Devlin.