DRIFT lights up abu dhabi with whispering grass, heartbeat blooms, and 2,000-drone falcon

"drift presents a triptych of light across jubail island, abu dhabi brings three new large-scale light installations to Manar Abu Dhabi, transforming Jubail Island into an illuminated landscape of shifting wind, data, and memory. Part of the outdoor festival's second edition, running until January 4th, 2026, the works are staged within mangroves, tidal waterways, and open sky, allowing technology and environment to operate as a single system."

"Across Jubail Island, the three installations introduce different modes of engagement. Whispers unfolds at ground level within the grassland, Unfold operates as an interactive AI-driven environment responding to visitors' heartbeats, and Wind of Change expands into the sky through a 2,000-drone performance. Together, they span landscape, body, and atmosphere, using light, movement, and real-time data to examine how human presence intersects with the natural setting of the island."

"Whispers (2025) places 500 illuminated elements among wild Guinea grass, echoing its proportions and its instinctive ability to bend with the wind. Instead of towering over the landscape, each glowing tip aligns with the height of the viewer, collapsing hierarchies between artwork, environment, and human presence. As breezes move through the installation, the field responds with a rippling light pattern that feels both orchestrated and accidental, a reminder that adaptation is nature's quiet superpower."

Three large-scale installations on Jubail Island activate mangroves, tidal waterways, grassland and open sky with light, movement, and data. Whispers places 500 illuminated elements among wild Guinea grass, aligning each glowing tip to viewer height and producing rippling light patterns responsive to breezes. Unfold measures visitors' heartbeats in real time and translates biometric rhythms into a shifting audio-visual sculpture that blossoms like a character-driven flower. Wind of Change performs a 2,000-drone sky choreography that extends the work into atmosphere. Technology and environment operate as a single system to explore landscape, body, and atmosphere through adaptive, participatory experiences.

Read at designboom | architecture & design magazine