omnispace

Ansel Thompson

Fibre optic sofa by Ansel Thompson exhibited at the launch of nutopia's cyberlounge 2000. www.anselandassociate.com/

Refractive Imaging

Photographer Alan Jaras  experiments incorporating colour into the nominal b/w images of the refraction patterns of light passing through formed and shaped plastic. The objective is to introduce colour while still retaining the fine detail of the basic pattern.

Digital Dawn

DigitalDawn is a reactive window blind with a surface that is in constant flux, growing in luminosity in response to its surroundings. It digitally emulates the process of photosynthesis using printed electroluminescent technology. the darker a space becomes the brighter the blind will glow maintaining a balance in luminosity. A natural, botanical environment appears to grow and evolve on the window lamp. Light sensors monitor the changing light levels of the space triggering the growth of the foliage on the blind. The piece explores how changing light levels within a space can have a profound and physiological impact on our sense of well being. It also explores the ability and potential of fabric to flirt on the boundary of physical and virtual spaces as it plays with the ethereal quality of light in a continuous dialogue with its environment.

Light Therapy

The concept of Snoezelen was defined in the late 1970's by two Dutch therapists, Jan Hulsegge and Ad Verheul. While working at the De Hartenberg Institute in Holland, a center for people with intellectual disabilities, the two therapists learned of the positive responses a colleague was able to elicit from his severely challenged clients while exposed to a sensory environment he had assembled. Hulsegge and Verheul set up an experimental sensory tent at their annual summer fair to further test the idea. Constructed simply as a roof on poles with plastic sheeting dividers, this first sensory tent was filled with simple effects such as a fan blowing shards of paper, ink mixed with water and projected onto a screen, musical instruments, tactile objects, scent bottles, soaps, and flavorful foods. It was a tremendous success, especially with low-functioning clients who demonstrated positive verbal and nonverbal feedback. The following year, they built another creation with a concept name: "Snoezelen", a contraction of "snuffelen" (to explore) and "doezelen" (to relax). News of the successful experiments quickly generated interest across Europe and therapists began creating permanent and semi-permanent "Snoezelen" rooms at their centers.

Another landmark Snoezelen centre was installed in 1987 at Whittington Hall, a large institution for adults with intellectual disabilities located in North Derbyshire, U.K. Joe Kewin, a senior manager and his team offered six sensory environments to their clients and also pioneered early research examining client response to the Snoezelen multisensory approach. The results were impressive, specifically in clients who showed a marked reduction in self-abusive behaviors. Snoezelen is now used widely in education and care settings for children with disabilities and autism spectrum disorders. Encouraging results have also been shown from people suffering from mental illness, chronic pain, acquired brain injury, and stress. Over the past fifteen years, Snoezelen has expanded into 30 countries with thousands of installations, a worldwide foundation, national and international conferences, and research projects.

Reactive Cube

The Reactive Cube, by Graham Plumb, is an acrylic cube filled with water and light. It was designed to transform digital images into apparently physical objects. A 2D image is projected through a mass of water mixed with a specially formulated emulsion of oil. The light is captured by the oil and appears to become a real object. Each version of the series is based on a particular form of interaction. Some cubes are reactive to sound, another to gesture, to the breath of someone from the audience, etc.

Matrix XIV

Matrix XIV by Erwin Redl Fiber-optic LED Installation, 50 x 10 ft in Bloomberg Headquarters New York - permanent installation. Produced by Public Art Fund New York

Luminex

As often happens, the best inventions are the result of synergy and collaboration between fields very far each other; this is what happened to Luminex. The idea was to “weave the light” with optic fibres. Luminex combines technology and electronics with fabrics, using high efficient LEDs to spread light safely at very low voltages (3,6V). Powered via a commercial battery at 9V or with cells used in the mobile telephony technology, small rechargeable batteries with a duration of 7-8 hours.

Chilli Peppers Concert

The largest display of Element Labs’ VersaTUBEs ever assembled is touring the world on the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Stadium Arcadium tour. They form a wall behind the band and then extend from the front of the stage all the way out to the front-of-house mixer. The ceiling is covered with Versa TUBEs flat out over the audience, giving nearly every seat in the house an astonishing visual experience. Video designer Grier Govorko put together this outrageously innovative array that comprises a total of 720 TUBEs—660 of them the new 2-meter size.

“Using the Versa TUBEs on the Peppers’ tour has allowed me as a designer to take advantage of their relative ease of setup and lack of weight to extend 100’ over an audience,” he says. “This was something that I’d dreamed of doing before but I never had a product able to achieve it.”

Casino Niagra

Casino Niagara offers over 95,000 square feet of gaming and entertainment. At the heart of the space is an elaborate media tree that spans three levels with more than 90 plasma screens and the cutting-edge effects of Color Kinetics’ intelligent solid-state lighting technology. The original design called for a way to make the entire truss structure glow in various colors that would complement the color themes of the custom video content displayed on the screens. The ideal solution proved to be ColorBlast® 6, which provided bold, saturated color in a compact fixture that could be discretely installed within the trusses. A total of 78 ColorBlast 6 units were installed along the structure, shining down against the reflective surface. Each unit is individually controlled to allow for dynamic, color-changing effects along the entire structure.

Travelling Light

Thanks to light artist Peter Freeman, commuters heading southwest along the UK’s M5 motorway are now welcomed by a 44-foot (13-meter) beacon of vibrant color and light. Located at Junction 21, the mesmerizing, stainless steel structure comes to life in a variety of color changing light shows made possible by Color Kinetics’ intelligent solid-state lighting technology. Travelling Light was commissioned by Locking Castle Ltd. and completed in December 2004. According to Freeman, “Light and the changing seasons are a very important element of living in the southwest. With Travelling Light, I wanted to create a visual spectacle that would express an exuberance of color, reflect the passage of time, and lighten the journey of drivers heading into the region. This part of the M5 is also a main commuter route into Bristol, and I wanted to surprise and amuse drivers who use this stretch of road on their way to work.”