Kiwano Kinetics

The kiwano fruit grows on a small vine in scorching climates. The physical characteristics of the fruit have sensory peculiarities: while visually intriguing, the flavor is nondescript. The kiwano is composed of a layering of elements: a smooth skin with spike protrusions, seeds, soft tissue and a gel substance that is the edible portion of the fruit. The gel-like interior accounts for the largest percentage of the fruit. The gel is structurally stabilized by a network of tissue. The ratio of height to width of the Kiwano is approximately 1-1.6 which corresponds to the theory of the ideal proportion.
The spikes extend from the surface that stretches the skin and forms a ring throughout the development of the fruit. The development is evident in the skin through the undulating contours of the exterior form. The tensile relationship between spikes and skin became important in our later experimentation. One contrast between the exterior and interior is that although there are more thorns at the ends of the fruit on the outside, there are more seeds in the middle section on the inside which demonstrates a higher volume of growth at the center of the fruit than at the ends.
The thorns serve as structural supports for the inner fleshy seeds. When gravity and maturity of the fruit cause it to fall, the thorns keep the soft outer skin and the inner seeds intact. The thorns also have a direct relationship between the angle of the thorns and the angles of the seeds.
Although the fruit does not move on its own, its growth can be considered when analyzing its kinetic qualities. From immature fruit to ripe age, the horns remain the same size, while the rest of the fruit expands from within. The kiwano does not have a readily apparent thorn configuration consistency. The dispersion of the thorns seems to follow a non-uniform array. Looking at it from above, the thorns seem to be array circularly but each kiwano is unique in its design.
From the side, the fibers of the skin illustrate how the skin expands between thorns. A curvilinear pattern is expressed around the thorns.
While holding it, one always feels the sharp thorns. They force the person holding the fruit to treat it delicately, thus protecting the softer skin beyond the thorns.
The kinetic quality of the thorns has been used as the basis for the 50x scale design. A tensile structure was designed to expand within the constraints of an existing urban environment. The thorns are expressed as structural poles that protrude through a tensile fabric, thus creating a covered space beneath for a marketplace. At the center, the canopy is pulled inwards to balance the thorns pushing outwards. The central pull is open to the sky to collect water and light for a water feature at the center of the marketplace.

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