ReActor house for OMI is a study of the complex exchanges between our spaces and our selves, taking the form of a modernist-style residence lifted atop a 15-ft concrete column – allowing for its rotation in response to the wind and its inhabitants’ movements inside
Alex Schweder and Ward Shelley’s latest project for OMI International Arts Center in Ghent, NY is a study of the complex exchanges between our spaces and our selves.
Part of the duo’s ongoing investigation of 'social relationship architecture', ReActor is a modernist-style residence lifted atop a 15 ft (4.6m) concrete column where it rotates in response to the wind and its inhabitants’ movements inside.
Schweder and Shelley designed and built the 44ft x 8ft (13.4m x 2.4m) structure – fully-equipped with a working kitchen and running water – and moved in for a five-day performance in July. Their regular routines inevitably broke down as the artists sought a new sense of comfort. Each move had to be considered and coordinated to keep the house from tilting, and in the process an intimate choreography developed between the artists, the house and the environment. 'It takes only the slightest breeze to set us in motion,' wrote Shelley in a diary recounting their experience to the New York Times. 'It feels grand and processional. Always something to look at, always a new adjustment needed to stay in the shade.'
The experimental sculpture will be on display for the next two years and Schweder and Shelley will return as residents on September 24–25 and October 6–10, to further contemplate their spinning domesticity. If any problems should arise, the two could just retreat to their individual balconies at each end of the structure. Poetically, this arrangement is also the ideal one for keeping the structure in balance.
Each move has to be considered and coordinated to keep the house from tilting. In the process an intimate choreography is developed between the artists, the house and the environment
Schweder and Shelley designed and built the 44ft x 8ft (13.4m x 2.4m) structure – fully-equipped with a working kitchen and running water – and moved in for a five-day performance in July
INFORMATION
For more information, visit the OMI website
ADDRESS
OMI International Arts Center
1405 Co Rte 22
Ghent, NY 12075
-
Cult accessory brand Déhanche unveils chunky hardware jewelleryAfter three years of creating jewelled belt buckles, Déhanche jewellery joins our wish list
-
We gaze into our crystal ball to predict the tech hits (and misses) of 2026The shape of things to come: seven technologies that will define the year ahead, from robotics, AI, aviation and more
-
This documentary tells the story behind Louis Vuitton’s monumental Snakes and Ladders runway setThe new film offers a rare behind-the-scenes glimpse at how Pharrell Williams and Studio Mumbai conceived the 2,700 sq ft Snakes and Ladders board, which backdropped the house’s S/S 2026 menswear collection last June
-
This remarkable retreat at the foot of the Catskill Mountains was inspired by the silhouettes of oak leavesA New York City couple turned to Desai Chia Architecture to design them a thoughtful weekend home. What they didn't know is that they'd be starting a farm, too
-
Wallpaper* Best Use of Material 2026: a New Mexico home that makes use of the region's volcanic soilNew Mexico house Sombra de Santa Fe, designed by Dust Architects, intrigues with dark, geometric volumes making use of the region's volcanic soil – winning it a spot in our trio of Best Use of Material winners at the Wallpaper* Design Awards 2026
-
More changes are coming to the White HouseFollowing the demolition of the East Wing and plans for a massive new ballroom, President Trump wants to create an ‘Upper West Wing’
-
A group of friends built this California coastal home, rooted in nature and modern designNestled in the Sea Ranch community, a new coastal home, The House of Four Ecologies, is designed to be shared between friends, with each room offering expansive, intricate vistas
-
Step inside this resilient, river-facing cabin for a life with ‘less stuff’A tough little cabin designed by architects Wittman Estes, with a big view of the Pacific Northwest's Wenatchee River, is the perfect cosy retreat
-
Remembering Robert A.M. Stern, an architect who discovered possibility in the pastIt's easy to dismiss the late architect as a traditionalist. But Stern was, in fact, a design rebel whose buildings were as distinctly grand and buttoned-up as his chalk-striped suits
-
Own an early John Lautner, perched in LA’s Echo Park hillsThe restored and updated Jules Salkin Residence by John Lautner is a unique piece of Californian design heritage, an early private house by the Frank Lloyd Wright acolyte that points to his future iconic status
-
The Stahl House – an icon of mid-century modernism – is for sale in Los AngelesAfter 65 years in the hands of the same family, the home, also known as Case Study House #22, has been listed for $25 million
