Leonardo Da Vinci: A Mind in Motion
British Library – Paccar 2 Gallery, 2019

We were asked to design inaugural exhibition in this new gallery which brought together for the first time pages from Leonardo’s scientific notebooks - Codex Leicester (on loan from Bill Gates), Codex Arundel (BL) and Codex Forster (V&A). Much of Da Vinci’s sketches are his exploration of physical forces in the natural world, particularly the movement of water.

The design created a series of bays displaying the works with illuminated walls, to create a great sense of distance and space within this small gallery - the layered gauze also created a subtle Moiré effect like moving water, gently swirling with the movement of the visitors.

At either end of the space were projected media which animated the title with fluid dynamics and provided an animated illuminated wall vista using generative motion of Da Vinci’s drawing strokes.

Hara Clark also designed the new Paccar 2 gallery which included the complete rebuild and reconfiguring the mechanical and electrical systems to substantially increase the ceiling height as well as incorporating a flexible overhead rigging and acoustic baffle system.