SO – IL Office Ltd.

Murmuration Installation

Murmuration Installation
© Factor Eficiencia

MURMURATION INSTALLATION

SO-IL

ARCHITECTS
SO-IL

LOCATION
Atlanta, United States

CONTRACTOR
Superior Rigging

ENGINEERING
Uzun + Case

CLIENTS
High Museum of Art

AREA
2018 m²

CATEGORY
Installation, Temporary Installations

DESIGN TEAM
Ted Baab, Andrew Gibbs, Ray Rui Wu

YEAR
2020

FABRICATOR
Factor Eficiencia

PHOTOGRAPHS
Fredrik Bauer, Factor Eficiencia

Text description provided by architect.

Atlanta’s singular cityscape is celebrated for its abundance of trees. ​Murmuration, ​a temporary installation for the High Museum of Art, responds directly to the architecture of its Renzo Piano-designed Piazza.

Murmuration Installation
© ​Fredrik Bauer
Murmuration Installation
© ​Fredrik Bauer

Using the lens of bird migrations, it reacts to Atlanta’s relationship with the natural world.

As they cross the Piazza, guests are enveloped by a foliage-filled mesh canopy suspended from a steel framework, evocative of the tree canopies found throughout the region

We worked with Atlanta-based engineers Uzun & Case to develop a constellation of metal frames suspended from six poles and wrapped in agricultural netting, which gives the installation its shape.

Murmuration Installation
Courtesy of SO-IL
Murmuration Installation
© ​Fredrik Bauer
Murmuration Installation
Courtesy of SO-IL

The sculptural arrangement echoes the form of a bird murmuration, a flock of birds, momentarily suspended in midair.​ ​The canopy is strewn with ample birdfeeders, seating perches, and other playful elements to encourage interaction, observation, and awareness. The experience is designed to spur conversations around biodiversity, extinction, and cohabitation.

The city’s canopy provides shade, cleans the air, and helps reduce stormwater runoff. Creating a sustainable future for Atlanta includes maintaining or increasing the number of trees.

Murmuration Installation
© ​Fredrik Bauer
Murmuration Installation
© ​Fredrik Bauer
Murmuration Installation
© ​Fredrik Bauer

In its title and concept, ​Murmuration​ also directly advocates for conservation efforts toward birds, questioning their loss and the terms for our future environment.

The structure was fabricated and fully erected in Mexico before being shipped to Atlanta. As such the installation can be deinstalled and reinstalled in future locations and create its own migratory path.


Murmuration Installation
Plan
Murmuration Installation
Elevation
Murmuration Installation
Detail

SO – IL Office Ltd.
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SO – IL Office Ltd.
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