Besides its interesting mirage-like qualities, the Light Sanctuary generates 5000 megawatt hours of solar energy a year.
The 80 000 square metre desert sculpture is adjacent to a wildlife reserve outside Dubai. Designed by New York-based architects Decker Yeadon, the structure was made using 40 kilometres of vertical photovoltaic panels, stands 10 metres tall and creaes a “waveform pattern” that makes it appear to be floating.
The third-generation thin-film photovoltaics means that the solar panels will perform even under extreme temperatures and capture the sunlight from a wider range of angles.
The Light Sanctuary in one of the entries in the 2010 Land Art Generator Initiative competition, which hopes to promote “solution-based art practice”.
