The “Atlanta Wind Phone” Finds a New Resting Place at Historic Oakland Cemetery
We are excited to announce a collaboration with The Grief House to relocate the Atlanta Wind Phone to historic Oakland Cemetery in Spring 2026. The new location will provide a peaceful space for reflection, remembrance, and healing in a setting that blends history, nature, and community.
Photos by Jeffrey Moustache
The Atlanta Wind Phone, currently installed at Woodruff Park as part of the public-art project “The Space Within,” has offered Atlantans a unique, symbolic way to “call” loved ones, speak their grief, or find solace in silence. With the art installation closing on December 31, the Grief House sought a lasting home for the Atlanta Wind Phone, and Oakland Cemetery is a space that offers a meaningful, deeply appropriate setting.
“Oakland Cemetery is already holding space for those looking to reflect and connect - both about and with our ancestors as well as our Atlanta community, said Sascha Demerjian, executive director and co-founder of the Grief House. “Moving the Atlanta Wind Phone to Oakland Cemetery will allow more grievers to engage with this powerful installation.”
Photos by Jeffrey Moustache
As a public park and community space, Oakland is already a place where Atlantans come to reflect, remember, and connect - whether for historic tours, quiet walks, or visiting with “resident” loved ones under oak trees. The addition of the Atlanta Wind Phone will offer a dedicated space for grief, remembrance, and healing rooted in both place and purpose.
“The Atlanta Wind Phone is a natural fit for Oakland because this space reminds us every day that memory, loss, and legacy are part of our shared story,” said Dr. Richard Harker, president & CEO of Historic Oakland Foundation. “By partnering with the Grief House to give the community a quiet, accessible place to speak their grief, we deepen Oakland’s role as a place of memory, connection, and healing.”
Wind Phone Origins. The original “wind phone” was created in Ōtsuchi, Japan in 2010 by garden designer Itaru Sasaki, after his cousin's death from cancer. Sasaki set up an old telephone booth in his garden to continue to feel connected to his cousin by "talking" to him on the phone. In an interview, he stated, "Because my thoughts couldn't be relayed over a regular phone line, I wanted them to be carried on the wind." Learn more about the wind phone’s origins here.
