Douglas Hollis

Douglas Hollis (b. 1948) is an American artist who works with wind- and water-activated sound sculptures, often in site-specific situations. He received his BFA from the University of Michigan and has since created numerous permanent and temporary sound installations around the United States. Working as an artist-in-residence alongside the museum’s founder, the noted physicist and educator Frank Oppenheimer, Hollis developed a fascination with sound sculpture and landscape that has persisted throughout his career. Hollis has created permanent works for the Port of Los Angeles, the New Denver Airport, and the Lawrence Hall of Science in Berkeley, California. His temporary works include commissions for the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the de Young Museum in San Francisco and the San Francisco Art Institute.

Aeolian Harp

An eerie orchestral chord floats on the breeze; it’s the shimmering sound of a 27-foot tall harp being strummed by the wind.

Where: Gallery 5: Outdoor Exhibits

Archimedes

Parabolic dishes collect and focus sound waves and reflect them to participants seated within them.

Where: Plaza

Listening Vessels

Enormous parabolic sculptures transmit a conversation—or even a whisper—from one person to another across a great distance.

Where: Bechtel Gallery 3: Seeing & Listening

Vortex

A twist of a knob sets water jets in motion, causing water in this giant cylindrical tank to spin. Soon, a tiny vortex appears at the surface, gradually swelling in size as it snakes downward.

Where: Fisher Bay Observatory Gallery 6, Mezzanine

Zephyr Trio

In the parking lot outside the former Exploratorium building stood three steel poles with mounted weather vanes and vertical hollow tubes that turned depending on the wind direction. When the wind was just right, mysterious organ tones could be heard from the tubes of this exhibit.

Where: This exhibit is not currently on view.