Art and AcousticsArt and Acoustics
At best most acoustic treatments are boring. At worst they’re downright ugly. Art and Acoustics is one man’s attempt to remedy this situation. Sharing a room with ModWright Instruments Inc. at the Venetian Tower 30-227 artist Stephen Yates displayed his solution to the dilemma of how to incorporate acoustic treatment into a living space in an aesthetically pleasing way. He’s an abstract painter whose original works are primarily large scale paintings, some as large as 10 feet wide and six feet high.
One of the two acoustic treatments he displayed at CES was a large four-part panel created from one of his paintings. It was transferred from the original painting via dye sublimation printing onto Guilford of Maine’s acoustically engineered 100% recycled polyester fabric. A second layer of 100% recycled polyester fabric is placed behind the printed layer.
Inside the panels Art and Acoustics uses Knauf EcoBatt glasswool insulation. This material has been certified for indoor air quality by Greenguard Environmental Institute, a global non-profit organization that tests building materials for toxicity. With a noise reduction coefficient of 1.00+, the panels attenuate sound from 125 Hz to 4000 Hz with maximum effect from 500 to 4000 Hz.
Priced at around $100 per square foot, a typically sized 32” by 52” panel would cost approximately $1150 (yes I know the math isn’t exact, but that was the quote I received at the show for the displayed sample.)
For more information look at www.artandacoustics.com and www.stephenyatesart.com
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Comments
Cool idea to integrate the panels into art. However, the Greenguard Environmental Institute appears to be a mixed bag.
Many products are certified but critics argue that their requirements are actually weaker than government recommendations and are not applicable to homes (see: https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=35310021&postID=931719465537750145 or simply google “greenguard false claims”). Greenguard does require testing but only on offgassing of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), no other “green” attribute. It does not address toxic content that can be shed as dust and ingested. It was started by, and only allows testing from, one testing business, Air Quality Sciences (they “share” a headquarters). So every product they can get certified results in ongoing testing business for them. They apparently invent their own “standards” with no formal, independent review and the details are not fully available for all product types. Some of their statements appear misleading — they are accredited by ANSI (American National Standards Institute) to develop standards and have a board of people to review them, but their VOC standards have not used their ANSI process, have never been reviewed by their consensus board, and so are not ANSI approved. Apparently things are not as straightforward as they might appear.
These are so beautiful! What a fabulous idea!
January 14, 2009
Here is some information about the EcoBatt insulation used in ArtAndAcoustics.com panels from a Nov. 6 2008 Knauf news release:
EcoBatt Glasswool Insulation products improve the already exceptional environmental credentials of fiber glass insulation because they are produced with a revolutionary new binder called ECOSE Technology. ECOSE Technology delivers superior environmental sustainability, reduces embodied energy, and contains no phenol, formaldehyde, acrylics or artificial colors typically found in traditional fiber glass insulation.
According to Knauf Insulation director of product and process development Ron Houpt, the new products are truly ground-breaking because they offer a higher level of sustainability without compromising product performance. “EcoBatt Insulation products are really superior products because of the unsurpassed level of sustainability they offer.
“With energy costs rising, and energy sources diminishing, conservation is critical for our earth’s future,” says Knauf Insulation director of public affairs and sustainability, Scott Miller. With ECOSE Technology we extend our product benefits further because it is made using rapidly-renewable organic materials, instead of the conventional non-renewable petroleum-based chemicals used in traditional binders. That eliminates petroleum-based binder chemicals from our process, and helps preserve our world’s energy resources. ECOSE Technology creates a more advanced and sustainable product; and since no phenol or formaldehyde is used, it also eliminates manufacturing emissions of those chemicals.”
Knauf’s Insulation products have always been sustainable—made from renewable and recycled content, and saving hundreds of times more energy in use than required to manufacture them. But, EcoBatt Insulation now takes sustainability to a whole new level by creating a product that combines a minimum 30% post-consumer recycled glass, and one of the world’s most abundant renewable natural resources—sand, with the new ECOSE Technology. ECOSE Technology is up to 70% less energy intensive than traditional binders, and reduces the carbon footprint of products made with the revolutionary technology by eliminating the petroleum-based chemicals traditionally used to make insulation binders.
Knauf’s launch of the next generation of sustainable insulation products is in keeping with its long-held culture of environmental stewardship and continuous improvement according to Knauf Insulation president, Bob Claxton.
“Environmentally sustainable, containing no phenol, formaldehyde, acrylics or artificial colors, made from sand, 30% recycled glass and ECOSE Technology binders using organic materials make this product one we have carefully chosen to be a part of our product line for Art and Acoustics.”
Stephen Yates, BFA, MFA
President, Art and Acoustics
www.artandacoustics.com
Thank you for the additional information on the Knauf EcoBatt insulation.
The Art and Acoustics product line offers an elegant solution to a common problem. My impression is that Knauf has a strong reputation for quality products and I am impressed with their new EcoBatt material, especially as it is moving away from formaldehyde and appears to address a variety of environmental attributes.
In the crush of eco-marketing claims, the Greenguard Environmental Institute initially appears to be a helpful organization focused on improving air quality to benefit people, especially children. But after seeing it pop up time and again with incomplete or misleading information, and after trying to better understand the science behind their claims, it strikes me as highly questionable and not very credible.
Certainly air quality is important and testing to measure what is offgassing from products is a good idea, but I think Greenguard certification raises more questions than it answers -- which may not reflect well on the firms with Greenguard certified products.
January 17, 2009
Lab-tested, Mother Nature approved, EcoBatt Insulation products are interior friendly.
They are also certified to meet CHPS (California’s Collaborative for High Performance Schools) low-emitting materials criteria section 01350 for indoor air quality standards according to Scott Miller, director of public affairs and sustainability at Knauf.
After five years of research, Knauf is committed to convert all of its insulation products to ECOSE Technology by the end of 2009.
I hope this additional information will inform those who want to know how our Art and Acoustics panels are thoughtfully designed to place in your living environments.
Stephen Yates, BFA, MFA
President, Art and Acoustics
Stephen [at] artandacoustics [dot] com