2024-12-22T01:49:44-05:00 https://archinect.com/news/article/88541265/between-a-womb-and-a-cathedral-architects-of-air-s-the-most-beautiful Amelia Taylor-Hochberg 2013-12-12T13:31:00-05:00 >2013-12-16T19:02:09-05:00 <img src="https://archinect.gumlet.io/uploads/r6/r63uw59zid7dkivc.jpg?fit=crop&auto=compress%2Cformat&enlarge=true&w=1200" border="0" /><p> Reactions to Alan Parkinson's luminaria range from rhapsodic and enlightened, to energized or calmed. These giant inflatable structures, first designed by Parkinson in the 1980s and now touring worldwide under his "Architects of Air" organization, resemble multi-colored bouncy citadels, and create a totally immersive experience of light and color to anyone who walks their winding interiors. Imagine a Verner Panton wormhole opening into a florescent clerestory; a near-psychedelic secular pilgrimage through some giant creature's digestive system.</p> <p> To celebrate over twenty years of designing, building, and touring the luminaria, Architects of Air has released <em>The Most Beautiful</em>, a photo book with nearly glowing images from inside the structures and a quick look at the luminaria's design history.</p> <p> <img alt="" src="http://cdn.archinect.net/images/514x/jp/jpbmd9woqfj679dk.jpg" title=""></p> <p> Since putting the first luminarium on tour in the early 1990s, Architects of Air has designed over fifteen more structures and inflated them all over the world. Made out of a custom fle...</p>