Located in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma, the so-called Center of the Universe is a concrete circle that is slightly over eight feet in diameter. It has gained a following as an acoustic anomaly, with many claiming that any noise made inside the brick circle is loudly echoed, but only those inside the circle can hear it. It’s been referred to as someone’s own private echo chamber but the engagement that it has cultivated at the site is so much more limited than could be enabled.
The potential experiences that could be cultivated at and around the Center of the Universe would attract the attention of residents and visitors alike but there is very little for people to interact with at the location. It’s said that loud sounds heard inside the circle cannot be heard from outside the perimeter of the brick structure but there is little to encourage or make audiences aware of this phenomenon in order to experience it for themselves.
Without much to look at or engage with, the experiences that audiences can have at the Center of the Universe are quite limited. These limitations are evident in the setup of the site itself.
While the subtle appeal of a place that is so ordinary that most pass right through it, the Center of the Universe has the potential to much more. Unexplained phenomena can serve as unique landmarks that attract audiences from all over, highlighting how the experiences that can be cultivated around them allow such spaces to serve as monuments for an entire city or region. The Center of the Universe could cultivate such experiences to the benefit of the space, the city of Tulsa and beyond.
