Traditionally, mosque courtyards featured a sundial that indicated the time of the five daily prayers, and mosques served as spaces where the general public could align their sense of time with the movement of the heavenly bodies. Inspired by the architecture of the SOM Hajj Terminal, Civil Architecture have reimagined the sundial as part of the Islamic Arts Biennale in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The round opening (oculus) in each unit of the terminal’s canopy, which limits the amount of direct sunlight passing into the space below, acts as an inverted sundial. The installation in turn tracks the movement of a beam of sunlight rather than a cast shadow. This sunbeam passes over lines on the ground corresponding to the hours, months, and seasons, as well as sculptural objects that indicate significant moments in Islamic lunar calendar and refer to the Biennale’s public program.