Spin-off Contouro realises monumental Sculpture Project

Spin-off Contouro, founded by Digital Building Technologies researchers Andrei Jipa and Angela Yoo, has unveiled an imposing walk-in sculpture that merges art, architecture and engineering in the garden of the Kunsthaus Zürich.

Photo by Franca Candrian, Kunsthaus Zürich, © Monster Chetwynd

The project is based on a clay model by British artist Monster Chetwynd. Contouro scanned the original 30-centimetre clay model with a laser scanner and worked with the digital file to design the construction. In the process, the model was transformed into an eight-metre-high sculpture made of timber, steel and concrete. The outcome is a hybrid work that invites public interaction and demonstrates new possibilities in contemporary construction.

The geometric work of the interior was structured using digital fabrication. Photo by Patrick Gutenberg

Contouro builds on research carried out at ETH Zurich and within the NCCR Digital Fabrication, where the founders investigated computational design methods and advanced fabrication technologies. The company’s work now focuses on tailored solutions for the construction sector, exploring how computational design and fabrication can transform materials such as concrete into minimal, efficient and aesthetically striking forms.

By translating academic innovation into real-world applications, Contouro exemplifies how research can directly shape the built environment. The sculpture not only embodies artistic vision but also demonstrates the potential of digital fabrication to create novel architectural and structural expressions. Further details about the spin-off and its ongoing projects will be featured in an upcoming article.