Wind is inherently without form. The Exhale pavilion harnessed this essential formlessness to create a dynamic interactive environment for public art. The winning competition entry for the Art Basel Miami Beach and Creative Time Oceanfront project by Phu Hoang Office and Rachely Rotem Studio created a public art venue for the annual Art Basel Miami Beach contemporary art fair. The evening programs included video and performance artists as well as D.J. dance programs. The 25,000-sq.ft. beach site in Miami Beach was temporarily transformed by seven miles of hanging ropes swaying in the wind. The form of the pavilion literally shifted with the weather, producing an open, flexible and dynamic environment.

The Exhale pavilion used two types of rope to create diverse interactive environments. Some ropes were reflective while others were phosphorescent; together, they produced a canopy that shimmered and glowed in the night. An interactive installation of “floating ropes” was activated by a wind-speed sensor. When the wind reached a particular speed, it momentarily activated all of the adjacent ultraviolet lights, “charging” a field of glowing phosphorescent rope. Other, smaller wind speed sensors mounted at human height responded directly to users’ behavior. When someone blew on a sensor, it momentarily “charged” the nearby glowing ropes. Additionally, a hammock clearing provided a space for the public to lounge and swing beneath the swaying rope canopy. Both the floating ropes installation and hammock gave form to the site’s wind effects while creating new forms of public interaction with the environment.