ABSTRACT
This chapter engages with the elemental lures of wind and weather. More specifically, I explore heightened perceptions of atmospheres and weather patterns that are informed by the fabrication and launch of aerosolar sculptures. The empirical focus of this chapter is the multidisciplinary initiative Becoming Aerosolar and the aerosolar pedagogies that unfolded at the Institut für Architekturbezogene Kunst between 2014 and 2016. Through stories of aerosolar workshops and launches, I show how perceptions of atmospheres and weather patterns intersect with perceptions of air-entry laws, insurance schemes, traffic control regulations and socio-political conditions. More specifically, I explore an orientation to air that is not about distanced observation but about ‘interrogating’ air for its simultaneous physical, social and political qualities. With these resources, I build a case for an expanded and political phenomenology of air and atmosphere, key to the apprehension of elemental lures.
