Wind Organ and Sonic Sculptures
San Mateo, California
Seal Point Shoreline Park is built on top of a closed-down municipal dump. But it offers walking trails, a wildlife refuge, tremendous views of San Francisco Bay, and scattered public art displays. We've seen this cheery environmental penance in other parts of the US, from Virginia's Mount Trashmore to Missouri's Nuclear Waste Adventure Trail.
Seal Point hosts a selection of large kinetic metal sculptures, many which interact with the wind and acoustics of the landfill mound. A 17-ft. tall sculpture of pipes form a circular wind organ, with listening holes set at easy ear level. A pair of vertical metal saucers face each other, inviting visitors to stand between them and make noises.
A park entrance Wind Wheel "casts prismatic rainbows as it creates a circular gateway," though apparently it was expensive for San Mateo and didn't work as promised when installed in 2009.