The Wave Organ is a wave-activated acoustic sculpture developed by Peter Richards and built by George Gonzales. It was completed in May 1986 and constructed with materials taken from the demolished Laurel Hill Cemetery. It is dedicated to Frank Oppenheimer, Founding Director of the Exploratorium, who fundraised for its construction 1.
There is a large free parking lot for the Wave Organ between Crissy Field and the yacht clubs. After parking, you will have to walk past the St. Francis Yacht Club, the Marina District Lighthouse, and the Golden Gate Yacht Club to get to the sculpture as it is located on a jetty.
Along the walk, we saw a few people fishing.
I thought it was interesting to see a short lighthouse with cemented door and windows in the walk towards the Wave Organ. The story behind the lighthouse is even more interesting than I thought.
This harbor was originally built as a lagoon for the Panama-Pacific International Exhibition of 1915. The SF city commission planned to build two of these lighthouses to light the entrance to the harbor2. In the end, they only constructed one that they don’t even use anymore.
The sculpture consists of 25 organ pipes at various elevations that become activated when the ocean waves come crashing in. The tide wasn’t high when we went, so we didn’t hear anything. There are benches for people to sit and enjoy the sounds and views.
It was a foggy day but we could still see Fort Mason in the southeast and Alcatraz Island in the north (see cover photo).
Photos taken January 2021.