Ventifact is a spontaneous gathering space inspired by natural wind formations. It strives for a future in which the city fosters connections amongst its inhabitants, while building a unique identity driven by sustainable reuse of materials from the construction industry.

With the rise of the metropolis in a post-Industrial world, the concentration of people in cities has skyrocketed. In turn, its buildings have also skyrocketed quite literally, to birth the skyscraper. In this context, a major complaint within cities is the oppressive anonymity and lack of intimacy. With the advent of high-rise living and working, the concepts of neighborhood and community identity have fallen by the wayside. These concepts are important in the push towards sustainability; by the year 2050, it is estimated that 70% of the world’s population will live in cities. While this trend will have implications beyond the scope of Ventifact, it drives home the necessity of people connecting with each other in order to create a sustainable environment together.
Ventifact addresses the city’s past and directs it to a future in which the metropolis nurtures personal connections amongst its inhabitants. With advances in telecommunications technology, it has become easier to connect with people regardless of distance. Connecting to a friend across the pond now takes the same effort to connect to a family member on the other side of the globe. Despite this, the city remains very much in the physical realm, and so people should celebrate its incredible spaces and cherish in-person experiences. 
 
Thus, Ventifact creates a wondrous space to foster gatherings and provides an opportunity to explore movement through unexpected spaces. It aims to capture the dynamism of the form-creating wind and inspire the same dynamism through visitors’ conversations and experiences.

Ventifact’s massing is drawn from studies of wind-formed geological wonders, particularly sea caves and sea cliffs. It aims to capture both the negative and positive space – both the form and the void. The form is experienced visually as the audience approaches Ventifact. The void is experienced dynamically as the audience moves around, toward, and into the form.
Much like the wind that shapes the sea cliff, Ventifact’s Cloak component is an expression of that spontaneous dynamic movement as it rises from the ground up. The Cloak creates a procession inviting the audience to explore around the Shell before entering.

​

Upon entering the Shell, much like opening an oyster to reveal its pearl, visitors are greeted by the Core, which travels up the white mesh interior with sweeping, airy forms. This sculptural installation is inspired by the dynamism of the wind, creating natural formations that truly stretch the imagination. 

To facilitate events that can take advantage of Ventifact, the grassy ground enclosed by the Cloak is intended to provide a shielded space for gatherings and events, while the Core with its sandbox invites children to play and provides the opportunity to change the elevation within the Shell to create a stage within the Core for performances. 
 
As a unique gathering space, the Ventifact experience connects the audience members with each other and with their impact on the environment, pulling sustainability to the forefront of the collective mind. At its simplest, Ventifact takes anonymous, ephemeral materials usually only used to aid construction and (re)uses them to create an inspiring space with its own identity. In doing so, Ventifact ignites an appreciation for the wonders of the planet and its conservation.