Tensegrity Workshop

The team at Atelier Marko Brajovic came together in the lush surroundings of Paraty, Brazil, for a hands-on workshop with a dual purpose: to collectively build a tensegrity structure and to strengthen the bonds within the team.

What is a tensegrity?

A tensegrity — short for “tensional integrity” — is a structural system in which rigid compression members (struts) float within a continuous network of tension cables. No strut touches another; the structure holds its shape entirely through the balance of forces. The concept was popularized by Buckminster Fuller and artist Kenneth Snelson in the mid-20th century.

The build

Using metal tubes as compression members and cables as tension elements, the team assembled the structure outdoors. The process was entirely collaborative: each person held a strut or pulled a cable while the system gradually found its equilibrium. What made it particularly engaging was that the structure simply could not stand without everyone participating simultaneously — one person letting go would collapse the whole system.

The result

The final structure stood over three meters tall — a self-supporting system of floating struts held together purely by tension. As a team-building exercise, it worked on multiple levels: the physical act of collectively holding a structure in balance mirrored the collaborative dynamics of the studio itself.