Vesper #12 - Solar

The 12th issue of Vesper, titled Solar, explores the Sun as both a scientific phenomenon and a cultural symbol. Our ‘mother star’—whose fusion core emits energy, radiation, and particles—shapes life on Earth, influences climate, and recently caused geomagnetic storms that disrupted power grids. From ancient civilizations to Campanella’s City of the Sun, the Sun has inspired cosmogonies, religions, and political visions. It also continues to inform architectural and design practices—from solar-oriented projects like the Smithsons’ Solar Pavilion and Invernizzi’s Villa Girasole, to energy-harvesting structures such as Ungers’ Solar House and Herzog’s Haus Regensburg. Venerated and feared, the Sun is a constant force—one we honor, harness, and sometimes dread, as William Atkins writes: “You can come to dread the sun […] its heat, but also its light.”