Conceived by American studio Pneuhaus, Atmosphere is an immersive light installation which isolates the sun’s rays into architectural elements in space. Light and air, two sub- stances which permeate our everyday environment on a massive scale, are isolated in this installation. As the sun’s angle changes in relation to the structure, viewers are presented with a dynamic labyrinth of light.
From the outside, Atmosphere is a large in atable structure in the shape of an angled cone. The form maximizes the amount of available surface area that sunlight will hit on any given day. Inside, fog is mixed into the pressurized space which provides a particulate for the planes of light to be caught by. The light rays seem physical. Visitors walk around and touch the light but can also pass right through them.
Over the course of the day, the walls of light shift their position and angle as the sun’s arc progresses through the sky. Atmosphere is welded together out of opaque 70 denier TPU coated nylon fabric. Clear PVC is welded in specific seams to separate the panels and let in a small amount of light. The patterning of the envelope minimizes the number of unique pieces that have to be cut.
Taking after the topological properties of carbon bonds, the structure consists of entirely equal edge length polygons (200 hexagons, 4 heptagons, 4 pentagons). Pentagons are placed at the tip of the cone, creating a concavity, while heptagons are placed where the tunnel intersects the cone, allowing for a convex junction to form.
