Format: immersive art installation
Location: studio paralo, hollywood, california
Dates: february 2024
Current Status: closed
HEAVY AIR : You aren’t floating, the sky is falling.
A cloudburst is a sudden, intense rainfall that occurs over a small geographic area within a short period of time, usually lasting no more than a few minutes to an hour. These events often result in rapid flooding due to the high volume of water falling in a concentrated area, overwhelming drainage systems and leading to flash floods. Cloudbursts are typically associated with thunderstorms or other convective weather patterns, and they can cause significant damage to property and infrastructure in affected areas.
Cloudbursts usually happen in areas where warm, moist air rises rapidly into the atmosphere. This rising air creates an updraft. As the warm, moist air rises, it cools and condenses to form cumulonimbus clouds. These clouds are characterized by their towering vertical development and can reach significant heights in the atmosphere. Within the cumulonimbus cloud, water vapor condenses into water droplets as the air cools with altitude. This process releases latent heat, further fueling the updraft and the growth of the cloud. As the cloud continues to grow vertically, the water droplets within it eventually coalesce to form larger droplets. When these droplets become too heavy for the updrafts to support, they fall to the ground as precipitation, usually in the form of rain. In a cloudburst scenario, the atmospheric conditions and dynamics are such that a significant amount of precipitation is released over a very short period of time, often within minutes to an hour. This intense rainfall is what characterizes a cloudburst.
Overall, cloudbursts are a result of the rapid development and collapse of cumulonimbus clouds, fueled by intense convective activity and atmospheric instability.
Farida Amar, lead artist
Maya Petersen, dancer
Tyler Law, dancer
Production Support: Emily Colvin, Lauren Lakin, Meka Tome, Claire June Apana, Chris Lopez, Vimi Sainz
Thank You: Good Neighbor Open House, Tyland LA