dome installation made out of colorful umbrellas decorates beach on brazil

settling on the beach of marina da glória in brazil, ‘solaroca’ is a temporary public installation conceived by opavivará! artist collective, designed and built by architecture firm bambutec. erected as a part of the international art fair in rio de janeiro, the project generates a lounge area sheltered by a geodesic structure made of multicolored umbrellas. 

all images by juan dias

with its dome shape, the umbrella structure by opavivará! and bambutec, makes a reference to the brazilian indigenous houses, called ocas. the colors for the umbrellas were chosen in accordance with the 8 shades of the LGBTQIA+ flag. the installation appears like a rainbow bomb, an arrangement of diverse flowers blooming on the soil of rio de janeiro. at its base, ‘solaroca’ receives the iconic triple beach chairs created by opavivará!. the whole installation is immersed in the carioca culture with the aim to occupy public spaces in a bold manner. 

‘solaroca’ is a mobile self-supporting structure, with no need for heavy foundations – it is fixed to the ground using lightweight steel anchorages. the dome has been formed using treated bamboo poles, based on a 2V geodesic structure. the reciprocal joints were eccentric and used flexible textile ropes lashed handmade techniques. the roof utilized 110 beach umbrellas connected to the structure, covering an area of 102 sqm and a hemispherical surface of 204 sqm. the structure is fixed to the ground the mounting procedure is silent and with low environmental impact. the structure is fully reversible, can be packed and transported to another location sites.

project info:

name: solaroca
designers: opavivará!, bambutec

designboom has received this project from our ‘DIY submissions‘ feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: myrto katsikopoulou | designboom