Rain Room now permanently and exclusively housed in the Middle East

Rain Room is now permanently and exclusively housed in the Middle East through the efforts of Sharjah Art Foundation. Rain Room, an installation by Random International in Sharjah, immerses visitors in continuous rainfall!

When visitors enter the room, they are directed to navigate intuitively and carefully through the dark underground space in order to protect themselves from the downpour. As the visitors walk through the room, which uses 1,200 liters of self-cleaning, recycled water, their movements trigger motion sensors that pause the rainfall when detecting movement.

Founded in 2005, Random International is a London-based collaborative studio for experimental and digital practice within contemporary art. Their work, which includes sculpture, performance and large-scale architectural installations, reflects the relationship between man and machine and centers on audience interaction. Sharjah Art Foundation is an advocate, catalyst and producer of contemporary art. Through the Sharjah Biennial, the annual March Meeting, year-round exhibitions, education, and community outreach programmes, grants, residencies, commissions and publications, the foundation encourages a shared understanding of the transformational role of art.

The Sharjah Art Foundation have exhibited a number of large-scale immersive installations through the Sharjah Biennials and during regular exhibitions, but the Rain Room is the first of a series of projects that are planned as permanent works in locations across the emirate.

The Rain Room building in Sharjah has been designed by Sharjah Art Foundation and the UAE-based Space Continuum Design Studio in collaboration with Shape Architecture Practice + Research, Sharjah.