​Rainbow Recreation Center, 2019

My intention was to physically define Rainbow Recreation Center’s role as a forward thinking center of cultural life in an Oakland neighborhood and to metaphorically define the nature of its’ inclusiveness and connectiveness.
​Components include a series of related design details, when taken together, reflect the welcoming atmosphere of this neighborhood facility.

• Welcoming Arch – The street side surface of the overreaching canopy arch is clad with diffraction grating – a subtle reflective coating which provides glimpses of intense color depending on light conditions and the positions of the sidewalk pedestrians or people passing by in their cars.
• Shadow Canopy – A roof of perforated metal bridging the space between the gym and the new construction, creating lively shadow play as its’ patterns move across the horizontal and vertical planes of the structure, punctuating the playful atmosphere of the center throughout the day.
• Solar Noon Marker – a long narrow cut sliced through the canopy roof, aligned with the earth’s north-south axis, creates a band of sunlight that moves slowly across the floor of the atrium in time with the movement of the earth.  A marker line in the atrium floor marks the location of the light band at “solar noon” every day.   
• Clerestory Tapestry – the clerestory windows of the lobby are coated with dichroic film which transmits various colors depending on current light conditions​
• Gliding Colors – multiple bands of colors glide slowly across the walls and floors in time with the sun, created by narrow skylights treated with diffraction grating.  This element serves as a complement to both Noon Marker and the Clerestory Tapestry

Location:  5800 International Blvd. Oakland, California
Materials:  Dichroic filters, diffraction grating, steel
Collaborators:  Byrens Kim Design Works,  Pete Stephens, Ron Hipschman
Sponsor:  Public Art Advisory Committee, City of Oakland​