
Wind Element: Living Innovation Zone SF
by Shawn Lani • September 17, 2013
Winner of the 2007 Architects Institute of America (AIA) design award (New Orleans Chapter), Wave Wall is a monumental kinetic facade activated by the wind. Each 35-foot pendulum is magnetically coupled with its neighbor so that the whole wall reveals beautiful fluid-like motions. Developed through a unique collaboration between Exploratorium artists Shawn Lani, Charles Sowers, Peter Richards, and scientists from the Laser Interferometer Gravitational Wave Observatory (LIGO), the artwork mirrors the theme of LIGO’s new visitor center – wave propagation, gravity, resonance, and light.
The LIGO Science Center includes over three dozen exhibits originally developed at the Exploratorium as well as educational outreach programs for students and teachers. Wave Wall serves as a reminder of both the beauty and complex mysteries that underlie projects like LIGO that seek to answer fundamental yet unanswered questions about our universe.
This parklet exploring the science of water lives outside a school in SF’s Mission neighborhood.
The city of San Francisco chose the Exploratorium to develop this site as a model for how to revitalize an urban space.
Visitors to the Exploratorium's new home on the piers enjoy exhibits that illuminate and capture outdoor phenomena: light, wind, tides, and more.