MirrorMirror tents are portable pop up event structure designed to be set up in six minutes or less.
MirrorMirror tents are extremely lightweight, with a double-sided mirrored canopy. The simple, gabled roof, angled at 45 degrees offers a radically new and intensified view of street life. The exterior of the mirrored roof reflects its surroundings. The reflective structures follow the logic of an instant pop up architecture – they are not tied to a single site, but nevertheless remain contextual. They take on an entirely different character in different locations.
The roof of the modular unit is made using reinforced aluminum framed panels with stretched, reflective Mylar foil. This material is typically used in space craft construction or for large mirror panels at film sets.
The on-site assembly of the tents is extremely fast. First, all steel frames unfold to form tripods. Then, all mirrored panels unhinge and slide onto the steel frames to form a rigid structural system. Standard concrete blocks provide the necessary weight to resist uplift by winds. No tools are needed.
The structural system consists of two components: the mirrored gabled roof and a steel frame tripod. Both structures are hinged, allowing them to fold completely flat for packing, transport and storage. The entire assembly of tents installed for example at the IDEAS CITY street fest in New York at the New Museum covered 1,040 sqft. Packed-up, it barely filled half a U-Haul truck.
MirrorMirror allows for extremely different configurations in scale, use and spatial experience. It can be used as a single unit but also combined to larger structures to form linear or field-like typologies. For the IDEAS CITY installation, we chose a linear, barn-like configuration in front of the New Museum building.