The gates of Coachella have finally reopened for the first time since 2019, revealing a series of large-scale installations specially commissioned by eleven international designers, architecture and design firms and experimental artists. In fact, in addition to anticipated performances by Billie Eilish and The Weeknd, lucky viewers will be surrounded by site-responsive works that a range of pressing topics and global themes surrounding environmental sustainability - from reuse to multicultural dialogue.

Since it began in 1999, the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival has grown, not just in its musical offerings. The event now stands as a small town of 125,000 people, where fans fill the record store, cafes, bars, clubs every weekend. As of this year, there will also be a town square, thanks to The Playground installation conceived by the Architensions studio of Alessandro Orsini and Nick Roseboro, with dual offices in New York and Rome.

For their first installation at the festival, the architects wanted to bring an urban dimension to the event, creating four towers ranging from about 12 to 20 meters in height, some connected by decorative bridges.

“Building our art program with designers, architects and visual artists from around the world and from the Coachella Valley allows festival-goers to explore shared global interests and perspectives through ‘experiencing ambitious large-scale installations,’” explains Paul Clemente, head of the art program for the Coachella Festival. “In the same way that music is a universal language, the experience of these new spaces invites connection and adds an iconic sense of place in the spirit of the Festival. After two years of planning, seeing the works come to fruition and making their way onto the field is very exciting.”