Sensing WATER

Posted on December 13, 2015 by dan

I-87/San Fernando Street, San Jose CA

paint, custom LEDs, Live weather data feed, interactive cell phone control

Sensing WATER is a weather-responding and interactive artwork utilizing light and paint to define a major downtown gateway in San Jose CA. The project is composed of 2 elements, the massive painted sloped wall that abstractly references flowing water, and the overhead evening lighting that illuminates with rippling patterns of light the underpass of I-87. The project uses real-time NOAA weather data to compose different patterns of light on the ceiling. (e.g.: 0-5mph winds vs thunderstorms). The projected light maintains a similar palate to the painted sloped wall, yet becomes dynamic depending on the weather.

In addition to the live weather feed transforming the space, this project is also highly interactive for those players of the Ingress multi-player game. By interacting physically on site with your cell phone, players can transform the space, revealing aspects of the game for a brief amount of time.

The site for the work sits over the Guadalupe River. The inspiration for this piece began with the ever-present awareness of water issues in California. San Jose once was know as the Valley of Hearts Delight- before becoming the Heart of Silicon Valley. Known for its orchards and fragrance of ripening fruit, San Jose was supported by rich soil and abundant access to water. I was curious to link both the awareness of water issues to the new focus of the high tech industry through the use of dynamic illumination.

Special thanks to those folks who made this project happen: The City of San Jose, San Jose Downtown Association, Kiboworks, Affordable Painting Services, HC Reynolds, Swenson Say Faget, Niantic

The Guadalupe River at this point is a culvertized river that is most often a “trickle” but fills with water during storm events.

Special thanks to those folks who made this project happen: The City of San Jose, San Jose Downtown Association, Kiboworks, Affordable Painting Services, HC Reynolds, Swenson Say Faget, Niantic

Not only do the lighting patterns change based on weather conditions, but they are dynamic- constantly pulsing and chasing, depending on severity of the weather.

Sensing YOU

Posted on December 13, 2015 by dan

I-87/Santa Clara Street, San Jose CA

Paint, acrylic, LEDs, steel, sensors, control, cell phone interface

Sensing YOU is an interactive artwork utilizing light and paint to define a major downtown gateway in San Jose CA. The installation is defined by over 1000 painted circles and 81 individually controlled illuminated rings that play a variety of patterns and low-resolution mapped video over the ceiling surface of the I-87 highway underpass. The patterns are activated by pedestrians and bicyclists moving through the space- setting off pre-programmed sequences.

In addition, we have partnered with Niantic Labs to allow users of the virtual real-world mobile game Ingress to temporarily take control of the space and making manifest in the artwork aspects of the game from their cell phones. Inspired by raindrops on water and the echoing patterns emitting from our cell phones, this artwork seeks to link technology and nature in this urban landscape sitting over the Guadalupe River- at the heart of Silicon Valley.

Special thanks to all the folks who made this possible: City of San Jose CA Office of Cultural Affairs, San Jose Downtown Association, Kiboworks, Affordable Painting Services, CH Reynolds, Tripp Plastics, Swenson Say Faget, Niantic Labs

Nebulous

Posted on October 2, 2015 by dan

“Brazil” building, Amazon Campus, Seattle WA

Glass, transparent conducting film, aluminum, photovoltaics, LEDs and electronics

Seattle is known for its inclement weather and computer innovation. The climate is changing, both environmentally and technologically. We are currently shifting from our analog hard copy world and local computer storage to “cloud-based” systems. The intricacy of these systems eludes most software users and yet clouds of radio waves constantly transport masses of information all around us. The two large pixelated cloud forms above us, inspired by this evolution in technology, float over the Amazon courtyard with two solar lighting shadows imbedded in the pavement below. Neither fully transparent nor fully opaque, these “low res” clouds have select glass discs that shift between levels of opacity in a digital dance resembling old school calculating computers or perhaps pulsing lightning within clouds on a stormy night.

A variety of glass and switch-glass panels designed by parametric modeling form the skin of the cloud-inspired sculptures

Special thanks to all of our great project partners:

Vulcan Real Estate Commissioning Agency, property owners
Metalistics Fabrication/installation
NBBJ Architects, parametric modeling (Andrew D. Heumann)
Turner Construction General Contractor
Craig Nelson Electrical Engineer
D&K Electric Electrical Installer
American Switchglass Switchglass fabrication
Peter David Studio glass supplier
Jeff Thon circuit board design/fabrication
Paul Strong programming
Solaright PV LED supplier

Compound Sight

Posted on June 24, 2015 by dan

Discovery Hall, University of Washington Bothell Campus, Bothell WA

10’h x 20’w x 3″ d. Glass, plano-convex lenses, hemispheric lenses, fresnel lenses, custom steel pivot hardware

The project title Compound Sight, refers to insect eyes where a variety of lenses make up single a “compound eye”. There are many ways to see, and we all see in unique ways and focus on things from our own perspective. It also refers to the nature of the co-laboratory wherein the artwork is housed. In the co-laboratory, students are encouraged to collaborate and “mix”, deeply observe and explore. Hopefully encouragement from multiple lenses will stimulate thought, interaction and foster an alternate and creative perspective to reveal itself. Perhaps like the nature of a compound eye, many images combine into a singular vision.

This pattern represented is that of the Fibonacci Sequence (a series of numbers where a number is found by adding up the two numbers before it). This pattern is represented in the architecture of the building, but also is found in many natural patterns including spiral galaxies, hurricanes, sunflower seed growth patterns, the chambered nautilus and many other forms of nature. The pattern is also utilized in an adjacent project Fibonacci Echoes

The project is designed to draw your eye away from the white frosted glass and direct it to the many lenses in the project. As the outside conditions change and movement happens, this image will be inverted and visible from the inside. Different distances and perspectives on the piece will provide different views and experiences. Due to the optics of the lenses, this becomes a passive kinetic piece without any moving parts.

Special thanks to Peter David Studio (glass fabrication), Swenson Say Faget (engineering), Metalistics (steel fabrication and installation), Cascade Glass (glass installation), Washington State Arts Commission (Commissioning agency and PM), THA Architecture Inc. (architecture), and of course to University of Washington Bothell.

FIBONACCI ECHOES

Fibonacci Echoes:
The radiating concentric rings of LED solar lighting are defined in numbers by the Fibonacci sequence and conjure patterns of radiating light, echoes and raindrops. The Fibonacci sequence (a pattern of numbers where a number is found by adding up the two numbers before it) is represented in the architecture of Discovery Hall, but is also found in many natural patterns including spiral galaxies, sunflower seed growth patterns, the chambered nautilus and many other forms of nature.

242 solar LED lights make up the radiating concentric rings that are defined in numbers by the Fibonacci sequence and conjure for me the patterns of radiating light, echoes and raindrops. This sequence and the use of light conceptually and physically unify the 2 projects.

Eidolon

Posted on April 8, 2015 by dan

Christian Petersen Art Museum, Ames, IA

lasers, first surface mirrors, steel, safety and control systems, glass, dye, water, mylar

Like its namesake, these sculptural forms appear to appear out of mist and light. Blue lasers enter the glass vessels holding a dye infused water capturing and bringing form to undulating veils of light. Distortions of the optics of the glass, and crinkled mylar send secondary bounces throughout the pieces further animating the optical geode.

I would like to recognize and give special thanks to the folks who helped contribute to this exhibition:

The Iowa State University Museums
Christopher Edrington
Christian Wehr
Mat Wymore
Dorothee Nygren,
Sydney Marshall
Natasha Porizkova,
Lynette and John Pohlman
Emily Morgan
Martin Blank
Trond Forre
video: Bill Gebhart
documentation music: Zoe Keating
and of course Nancy Gebhart

Decay

Posted on April 3, 2015 by dan

Christian Petersen Art Museum, Ames, IA

phosporescent doped wall, laser system, control, programming and safety systems.

As if by magic, patterns are created then slowly fade before your eyes. A simple dark blue laser dot or line moves across the canvas creating a pattern revealed only as a fleeting after image- slowly fading as soon as it is created. It is the persistence of photonic decay that allows us to see that laser projections are merely dots of light moving so fast our eyes can not see them as individual dots, but rather blur them into complete shapes. Slowing down the laser allows us to see what and how we see.

Special thanks to Christopher Edrington, Roberta McHatton, Nancy Gebhhart, Lynette Pohlman and our project volunteers.

Coherence

Posted on April 2, 2015 by dan

Christian Petersen Art Museum, Ames, IA

Coherence, utilizes the special inherent quality of spatial coherence to create the illusion of infinite spaces and provides the magic that will illuminate one filament and not the one next to it. Exploiting this special and unique nature of lasers elevates this environment to more than just a science experiment by creating the appearance of internal illumination where there is none, motion where there is none and with the addition of a mirrored floor, produces a subtle perceptive disorientation while defining and marking space in infinite and mesmerizing ways.

This exhibit utilizes 2 synchronized RGB lasers to project onto hundreds of suspended filaments creating an oceanic undulating immersive environment of light.

I would like to recognize and give special thanks to the folks who helped contribute to this exhibition:

Shifting Topographies

Posted on March 22, 2015 by dan

19th Street BART Station, Oakland, CA

High density foam, polyuria “hard coat”, chameleon paint, Glass, specialty dynamic projections.

Inspiration for Shifting Topographies began with the shifting patterns and colors of the rolling Oakland hills (green to gold) and at the macro scale the ripples of the adjacent San Francisco Bay (gray-blue-green). Other inspirations came from the flashy paint jobs in the car culture of this community and the signature Blue BART station for which the art marked the entrance.

Note the color shifting paint that radically changes depending on angle of the sun, position of viewer and time of day

The sculpture is fabricated from a high-density foam covered with a polyuria “hard coat” most often applied as “truck bed liners”. This super robust material is then painted with multiple layers of color shifting paint that dramatically changes color depending on sun angle and time of day.

At one end of the station, laminated safety glass with blue and mirrored ribbons of topography disguise the emergency ventilation shafts- providing a sense of movement and visual expansion in a compressed space. The mirrored topography also provides a site context and juxtaposition of the urban Cartesian grid playing against the natural land forms.

At night the sculpture conjures the drama of the adjacent theaters, nightclubs and galleries- providing movement, color, pattern and excitement to this previously under-used alley entrance. The patterning of the projections includes interference patterns created by dueling topographic lines, atmospheric nebulae-like patterning and swirling water-influenced movement.

Check out the video below to see the night moving projections:

Special thanks to all of our great project partners:

City of Oakland, Cultural Arts & Marketing Commissioning Agency
BART: Bay Area Rapid Transit (entrance to the 19th Street Oakland Station)
Martin Kaufman
Sasaki Associates landscape architects and design team partners
Heavy Industries fabricator
Atthowe Fine Art Services installation
Swenson Say Faget engineering
Visual Terrain lighting consultant
Jason Gedrose/ MVStaging programming
Greg Linhares additional photography

Nepenthes Paisleyi

Posted on July 14, 2014 by dan

Edmonton, Alberta Canada

17'h x 4' x5.6'w. Fiberglass, steel, LED's Sensors, GFRC

17’h x 4′ x5.6’w. painted fiberglass, steel, LED’s, sensors, GFRC

The name of the pieces are “Nepenthes.” The name is derived from a Greek magical potion that would cause the drinker to be relieved from or induce forgetfulness of pain, grief, or sorrow. I hope these sculptures might provide a brief respite from a hectic daily life, transporting us briefly somewhere else. Paisleyi is the botanic latin version of Paisley, named after the founder of the Edmonton Fringe Festival- and name of the community wherein the sculptures are located.

Nepenthes is also the name of a family of carnivorous plants. Beautiful, quirky, unusual, weird. The fascinating tropical pitcher plants, or “monkey cups,” collect water in their leaf vases. The plant water has an enzyme in it that helps dissolve insects (and sometimes small animals) that find their way into the cups, providing fertilizer for the plants that normally live in infertile locations. The shapes of the sculptures are inspired by the shape of a variety of Nepenthes and celebrates the wonderful diversity of Paisley’s colourful neighborhood.

Monochromatic by daytime, this family of sculptures take on a completely different character at night with the addition of dynamic LED programming.

There are a number of randomly occurring lighting programs that provide very slow changes throughout the evening. It is designed so that people driving by will not see the changes in patterns, yet if they drive by 10 minutes later they will see a different aspect to the project. When people enter the sculpture, integrated sensors pick up the motion and trigger a series of much more animated sequences.

The molds for these sculptures were originally developed for the Nepenthes Davis Street Project for TRIMET/City of Portland, Oregon. The Regional Arts and Culture Council has kindly provided permission for a re-envisioning of the original project for the Brookfield Residential neighborhood of Paisley in Edmonton. You can see the original project here: Nepenthes

Special thanks to all of our great project partners:
Brookfield Residential, Edmonton (funder and site work)
Heavy Industries (fabrication)
PMCS (LED engineering, and programming)

video of some of the dynamic LED sequences

Azul Healing Garden

Posted on November 14, 2013 by dan

MLK Hospital, Los Angeles CA

The Azul Healing Garden at the MLK Hospital in Los Angeles was conceived as a calming central courtyard in a stressful and arid urban environment. The space is anchored by 33 tons of blue glass mulch, plants with blue colored leaves, and twinkling solar blue lights in the walkway and planting beds.
Rather than just using plants that have historically been used to heal, I was interested in creating a space that could help induce calmness and creativity by utilizing the basic tenants chromotherapy and infusing the courtyard with azul.

The color blue is a calming color that has been shown to reduce blood pressure as well as calm breathing and heart-rate. It stimulates the parasympathetic system and has anti-inflammatory and muscle relaxing effects. It can be used to assist in relaxation and fights physical and mental tension. A blue environment has been demonstrated to make us more responsive to new ideas and increase creativity. When people relax, they become more open to new ideas and can develop creative solutions to problems.

The tall plant on the right is the Dragon Blood Tree. When the bark or leaves are cut they secrete a reddish resin called “Dragon’s Blood” that is used to stain the wood of the Stradivarius violins. It also has a number of traditional medical uses and was used by the alchemists.

All of the plant material in the garden has “blue” or blue-gray colored leaves.

Historic uses of Chromotherapy
Colour Therapy dates back thousands of years and to the ancient cultures of Egypt, China and India. Each color has a distinguishing wavelength and energy. The energy of each of the seven spectrum colors (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo and violet) corresponds with the seven energy centers or chakras of the body. Color therapy can provide balance among all of the energies in our bodies. Color can help humans on a physical, psychological and spiritual level.
Historically, the ancient Egyptians built solarium rooms with various colors of glass and other cultures used silks of different colors to bath their bodies in various shades of light. The ancient Egyptian temple of Heliopolis had a quartz crystal in the dome that split sunlight into the seven colors of the spectrum each of which filled a healing chamber. Each chamber was a place for people to receive color healing and contained herbs and colored materials. In his text “The Canon of Medicine,” Acivenna wrote about the relation of color to physical conditions of the body and viewed blue as a blood cooler. In the states, in 1876 Augustus Pleasconton wrote, “The Influence of the Blue Ray of the Sunlight and of the Blue Color of the Sky,” in which he discusses the positive influence blue can have in crop growth, livestock and human health. A few years later, in 1878, chromotherapy, the use of stained class and colored lights for healing, is suggested for the healing of burns, nervous excitability and cold in the extremities by Dr. Edwin D. Babbitt. Today, color is still used for healing. Natural therapists are using chromotherapy and successes have been reported in the recovery of stroke victims and other patients with chronic depression.

The color BLUE is a calming color that has been shown to reduce blood pressure as well as calm both breathing and heart-rate. It stimulates the parasympathetic system and has anti-inflammatory and muscle relaxing effects. It is linked to the throat and thyroid gland. It can be used to assist in relaxation and fights both physical and mental tension. Blue can also make us more responsive to new ideas and increase creativity. A study at the University of British Columbia, in which participants conducted various tasks on a computer screen with red or blue backgrounds, concluded that blue encourages motivation, “people relax, becoming more open to new ideas and creative solutions to problems.” Blue can also increase confidence and make people feel happier. General exposure to color is beneficial as well. In a study at the Mind Lab, “subjects exposed to colours completed mental tests up to 25 per cent quicker. Reaction times were up to 12 per cent faster, while hand-eye co-ordination and the ability to recall a list of words were also found to be improved.” Color affects the body, brain activity and biorhythms and as a result is being used in the treatment of diseases. In Ayurvedic medicine, blue is identified with the fifth chakra, it is located in the throat and associated with the throat, ears, mouth and hands. Its alleged function is physical and spiritual communication.

Positive Effects of the Color Blue-
-Blue is used in offices because people are more productive and focused in blue rooms
-Blue can lower the pulse rate and body temperature
-Blue calls to mind feelings of calmness and serenity, it is peaceful, tranquil, secure and orderly
-Historically blue was believed to soothe illnesses and treat pain
-It has a cooling and soothing effect
-Blue has positive physiological effects including lower blood pressure, and reducing tension
-Deep blue has proven to help the skeletal structure by keeping bone marrow healthy and it stimulates the pituitary gland that regulates sleep patterns.

FURTHER READING-“Color has a powerful effect on behavior, reseachers assert” Lindsey Gruson, The New York Times Science Section, Oct. 19, 1982. http://www.nytimes.com/1982/10/19/science/color-has-a-powerful-effect-on-behavior-researchers-assert.html?&pagewanted=all
This article looks at a study on behaviors of people, particularly children in different colored spaces and looks at how color can influence behavior and work methods. Blue and gray spaces have a tendency to increase focus and productivity.“A Critical Analysis of Chromotherapy and Its Scientific Evolution” Samina T. Yousuf Azeemi and S. Mohsin Raza Department of Physics, University of Balochisan, Quetta, Pakistan, Sept 2005. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1297510/
This paper analyzes the historic practices and scientific principles of chromotherapy and looks at the relationship between the human body and colors.
“A mammalian clock protein responds directly to light” Josh Hill, July 2, 2008. “Think Gene” Blog. http://www.thinkgene.com/a-mammalian-clock-protein-responds-directly-to-light/
This paper by Nathalie Hoang et al. examines cryptochromes in flies, humans and mice. In plants, cryptochromes absorb and process blue light and aid in growth and seed development. The exposure to blue light also reduces flavin pigments and this reduction promotes growth by activating the cryptochromes. In humans the crypotchromes are present and regulate the circadian clock, Hoang found that flavins decrease in humans in response to blue light too.
“Blue Light makes you happy” Jon Swaine, January, 6, 2009. The Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/4139796/Blue-light-makes-you-happy.html
A study conducted by The Mind Lab finds that exposure to light is generally beneficial and certain colors, including blue improve mood and confidence levels in men and women.
Naess, Inger. Colour Energy. 2004.http://www.natures-energies.com/color1.htm
Hamilton, Jon. “NPR Stories.” 6 February 2009. NPR. 9 December 2011 .
Swaine, Jon. “Blue light ‘makes you happy’.” The Telegraph 6 January 2009: 20.

Special thanks to the project team
LA County Arts Commission
MLK Renovation team, County of Los Angeles
RBB Architects Inc
AHBE Landscape Architects
Hensel Phelps, (GC) and associated subcontractors

Sonic Bloom

Posted on August 16, 2013 by dan

Seattle Center, Seattle WA

SONIC BLOOM, 2013, Pacific Science Center, Seattle Center, Seattle WA.
Commissioned by the Pacific Science Center and Seattle City Light’s Green Up Program.
5 flowers: 20’ diameter and up to 40’ tall. Steel, fiberglass, custom photo voltaic cells, LEDs, sensors, interactive sound system and energy data monitoring.

At the foot of Seattle’s Space Needle and a defining entry sculpture to the Pacific Science Center. The project was conceived as a dynamic and educational focal piece that would extend the Science Center’s education outside of their buildings while engaging the public with an iconic artwork prompting curiosity and interactivity both during the day and night.

The title Sonic Bloom refers not only to our defining location “on the Puget Sound” but also to the artwork itself that sings as the public approaches each flower. Every flower has its own distinctive series of harmonic notes simulating a singing chorus. A hidden sensor located in each flower identifies movement and triggers the sound. So if there are 5 people engaging the flowers together, it is possible to compose and conduct music together or by walking through, randomly set off a harmonic sequence.

photo © Frank Huster

Installation crew prepares to lift one of the flower centers onto its stalk. Note the array of custom photo voltaic cells and arching “stamen lighting”

Special thanks to all our great Project Partners:
Mike Nelson
Metalistics
Galaxy Electric &Solar
Steve Monsey
Paul Strong
Swenson Say Faget
Kiboworks
Bulldog Powdercoating
NW Auto Body
Puget Sound Coatings
Sunbacker Fiberglass
Silicon Energy
DMI Drilling
Van Overbeke Const.
Ace Galvanizing
Sound Deliveries
Enphase Energy
Kelly Early
Brickman Landscape
Frank Huster

Nepenthes

Posted on June 10, 2013 by dan

Portland, OR

Fiberglass, steel, LEDs, acrylic, steel, paint, batteries, electronics.

16.5′ h x 4′ x 5.6’w Fiberglass, steel, photovoltaic panels, LEDs, acrylic, GFRC, steel, paint, batteries, electronics.

Nepenthes is also the name of a family of Carnivorous plants. Beautiful, quirky, unusual, weird (not unlike Portlandians). They are the weird tropical pitcher plants or "monkey cups" that collect water in their leaf vases that sometimes monkeys drink from. The water has an enzyme in them that helps dissolve insects (and sometimes small animals) that find their way into the cups providing fertilizer for the plants that normally live in infertile locations. The shapes of the sculptures are inspired by the shape of a Nepenthes.

Nepenthes is also the name of a family of Carnivorous plants. Beautiful, quirky, unusual, weird (not unlike Portlandians). They are the fascinating tropical pitcher plants or “monkey cups” that collect water in their leaf vases that sometimes monkeys drink from. The water has an enzyme in them that helps dissolve insects (and sometimes small animals) that find their way into the cups providing fertilizer for the plants that normally live in infertile locations. The shapes of the sculptures are inspired by the shape of a variety of Nepenthes and celebrates the wonderful diversity and quirkiness of this colorful neighborhood.

Each sculpture contains solar cells and batteries that take in energy in the daytime and allow them to glow after dark. The time on changes with the season….about an hour after sundown. They stay on for 4 hours after they turn on.

The project was funded by TRIMET and was administrated by the Regional Arts and Culture Council of Portland (RACC). The project began with construction funds that were originally allocated towards stamped concrete in the center of 4 blocks. The community requested the funds be used for “Markers” to connect China Town to the Park Blocks (and possibly the Pearl District) along Davis Street- highlighting the street as a vibrant walking corridor and connector. The “Markers” project took a few twists and turns and ultimately became these glowing sculptures.

Construction Photo: Looking inside the the center of the teal sculpture

Thanks to all our great Project Partners:
Regional Arts and Culture Council (administration / project management)
TRIMET (funding source)
Heavy Industries (fabrication)
PMCS (PV/LED Engineering and Design)
Swenson Say Faget (Structural Engineering)
Art and Design Works (Installation)
John Russel (Concrete work)

Rays

Posted on May 29, 2013 by dan

Rivers Edge Park, Council Bluffs Iowa

Riverfront Park, Council Bluffs Iowa, 2013. Lawn, robotic lighting fixtures, dynamic pattern projectors, Infra red camera, doplar radar sensors, custom interactive software and hardware

Lawn, robotic lighting fixtures, dynamic pattern projectors, Infrared camera, doplar radar sensors, custom interactive software and hardware.

Originally inspired by the great European baroque knot gardens, this massive 5-acre Great Lawn is the canvas for a giant ever-changing light environment that echoes patterns of the past and updates them for the future. Utilizing powerful dynamic and robotic lighting fixtures, the lawn is activated every half hour after dark.
Within each sequence, there is a “show” mode and an “interactive” mode. Please see below for more details.

Some of the light patterns are inspired by slowly spinning “ice flows” as they break up and rotate while move down the river.

A dance of rotating white lines breaks up the lawn in geometric patterning inspired by 18th century French formal gardens.

Each pattern is dynamic: slowly spinning, zooming in or out and changing sharpness and color

Chasing rainbow colors for a few seconds indicates it is time for the “interactive” part of the event. Come onto the lawn and the lights will play with you.

In addition to the choreographed sequences, there is a complex interactive lighting component to the project that will track and “play” with people through a series of simple intuitive games as part of every “event”. Tracked by infra-red cameras and radar detectors, the locations and gestures of the people on the lawn in front of the stadium seating will control the lighting in some instances, and in others it will track them similar to follow spots at an ice skating event.

INTERACTIVE COMPONENTS
1. SENSING: When the general illumination park lights are on, radar detectors sense motion in the corners of the park and direct the robotic fixtures into those areas projecting individually selected spinning patterns.
2. GAMES: The field covered by a chasing rainbow of colors indicates it is time for the beginning of the interactive game section. Each half hour “show” has 2 randomly selected games that play for 3 or 6 minutes.

Each half hour event plays 2 randomly selected games:

The games are:
a. Stealing Dorothy Hamill’s Spotlight: 4 robotic lights randomly select one person to follow in on the field. The game is to figure out how to trick the robot and steal the spotlight from the person selected.
b. Hot-Cold: a blue spotlight is turned on in the field. As people move towards the spotlight the closest person to the spotlight is tracked and their position changes the color of the spotlight- changing the color from blue through all the different colors until it turns red when you jump onto the spotlight. Once you are on it, the “prize” is flashing the entire lawn through a series of colors before throwing the spotlight into another random location and starting again.
c. Cat Laser Pointer: a small green spot intelligently dances and doges the people who attempt to catch it.
d. Yellow Spot Blue Spot: out of all the people on the lawn, the computer selects random 2 people giving each a different colored spotlight. Can you trick the computer into switching followspot colors as it follows you around the field?

Easter Eggs: the name originates from secret animations and videos incorporated into software that are only revealed if you know the secret keystrokes. Our “Easter Eggs” are a series of gestures that will set off some brief visual “prizes” during the interactive game sequence times for “people in the know”.
a. Jump: if more than 55% of the people on the active lawn area jump up and down together then it will cause all the lights in the field to blink on and off like people jumping.
b. Flash Mob: if more than 55% of the people on the active lawn run in and huddle then break out- it will cause all the lights on the lawn to “go crazy” and swirl around for a few seconds.
c. Run for the River: if there more than 55% of the people on the active lawn begin at the curving sidewalk and at one time run towards the river, the whole lawn will ripple in colors of blue, white and teal.

Robotic Searchlights play “Steal Dorothy Hamill’s Spotlight” with park users during an “Interactive Sequence”.

4 people playing Yellow Spot- Blue Spot

Stadium seating as well as the great lawn become a dynamic projection surface for the robotic lighting fixtures

Swirling patterns originate on the Great Lawn but also sometimes get projected across the Missouri River onto Omaha’s convention center.

photo © John Jenkinson

photo © John Jenkinson

Special thanks to our great project team:

Lisa Passamonte Green, Mike Mahlum Visual Terrain
Chris Barbee, John Jenkinson Bandit Lites
David Beaudry Beaudry Interactive
Brad Haynes (programming)
Greg Jones Martin Entertainment
Gina Ford, Susannah Ross Sasaki Landscape Architecture
Brian Yessian Yessian (music for opening event and video)
Rich Sorich Iowa West Foundation (commissioning agency)
Larry Foster (City of Council Bluffs)

Gilbreths

Posted on April 10, 2012 by dan

Valise Gallery,Vashon Island WA

Homage to Lillian & Frank Gilbreth
Fluorescent materials, steel, motors, autotransformers, theatrical filters. Variable dimensions. Valise Gallery, Vashon Island WA 2012,

These kinetic sculptures engage the air and our persistence of vision with tracings of light generated by multi-color fluorescent materials. Depending on speed and material length, the sculptures can create various “resonance patterns” producing different “standing wave” shapes. Working in 1914, Lillian & Frank Gilbreth, were pioneers of light painting in the interest of studying “work simplification” for efficiency of parts assembly. Their early capturing of the form of moving light for their research inspired these sculptures that seek to give luminosity and sculptural form to air.

Homage to Heliopolis:
In ancient Egypt the city of Heliopolis (in Greek, or “iwnw” in Egyptian) was a famed center of healing. They created the first solariums that filtered light into the rooms through glass and colored silks, infusing the rooms with colored light. This early “chromotherapy” was used to treat a variety of ailments and spiritual conditions. This updated project utilizing theatrical filters on the windows infuses the gallery with saturated indigo and creates a backdrop of color for the other projects while referencing this ancient temple and the healing practices that took place there. These theatrical filters change the frequency of daylight in order to mimic UV “blacklight” thereby activating the florescent materials in the gallery. Notice after being in the gallery for a while that upon leaving, the brain tricks the eye in an effect called “retinal fatigue” changing the color balance in your brain. As you exit, it will briefly give the outdoor light a decidedly golden color (the opposite of the blue).

Special Thanks to: Artist Trust, Paul Strong, Steve Monsey, Julia Reeve and the members of Valise Gallery

Burle

Posted on April 10, 2012 by dan

Valise Gallery,Vashon Island WA

Homage to Burle Marx
Valise Gallery, Vashon Island WA, 2012 Electroluminescent tape, theatrical filters, variable size

This installation utilizes electroluminescent banding to create a series of dimensional bas-relief drawings inspired by the work of internationally renowned Brazilian modernist Landscape Architect and Artist Burle Marx. Corson has been a great fan of Marx’s work ever since exploring his work in while visiting his work in Brazilia, Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro Brazil. Marx’s love of bold patterning inspired from botanic and natural references inspires these wall-sized glowing installations.

photo: Andy Moniz

Special Thanks to: Artist Trust, David Verkade, Paul Strong, Steve Monsey, Julia Reeve and the members of Valise Gallery

Conjunctions

Posted on January 24, 2012 by dan

Ft Lauderdale, FL

LED lighting, interactive sensors, control system, etched steel, trees

A ring of trees and walkway surrounds the central lawn. As a person walks by an individual tree it changes color from white to green, then slowly fades back to white. Riding a bike around the park can quickly sequentially trigger the trees. As we move through the park, we affect the space around us and leave a temporary mark.

Also hidden around the park within the pavement are 5 metal medallions. When you step on these medallions it sets off a pre-programmed sequence of lighting events, making the trees dramatically change color, chase, simulate fire, sparkle etc. 4 medallions are programmed with consistent sequences, 1 is a wild card that randomly changes the lighting effects on the trees at every new activation.

Special Thanks to Broward County Public Art, DDA Ft Lauderdale, Elizabeth Veliky, Claire Garrett

Envir.Corollary

Posted on January 20, 2012 by dan

Bainbridge Island, WA

Immuno Environmental Corollary
This project was documentation of an installation done in the woods on Bainbridge Island. Its final format was 3 large-format Cibachrome prints that are part of the City of Seattle's Portable Works Collection.

This project was a meditation on the correlation between new emergent diseases/conditions and the unintentional results of manufacturing process that make their way into the environment and ultimately into our bodies.

Artist Planning Documents

Posted on January 19, 2012 by dan

A range of Art Plans for various municipalities and agencies. A few of which are excerpted below.

Diridon Neighborhood Art Master Plan (36p excerpt)
This Public Art Master Plan was created as a complementary Arts planning document to the Diridon Neighborhood Master Plan for the City of San Jose CA. This was created in collaboration with Ellen Sollod.

Diridon Neighborhood Master Plan (28p excerpt)
This Neighborhood Master Plan was created by Field Paoli with contributions by Dan Corson and Ellen Sollod (Arts Planners). The Arts Plan team also assisted in leading public meetings and community charrettes.

Broward County Light-Based Arts Plan (16p excerpt)
This Light-based planning document looks at a variety of lighting opportunities and expressions for Broward County Florida.

Seattle City Light Arts Plan (9p excerpt)
This Arts planning document looked at projects created during the first Seattle City Light (electric utility) Artist-in-Residence program as well as proposed potential projects for future artists

Waterlines

Posted on January 18, 2012 by dan

San Diego, CA

Mission bay is one of the most beautiful bays in the country, and yet when this artwork was created, it also was one of the most polluted bays. Beautiful from the outside and yet possibly toxic if you were swimming or sailing in it. The contrast of this piece was formed from the purified drinking water bottles that both marked the natural water line patterns formed by nature as well as creating an artificial protective barrier.

1988, waterbottles, bayside

Space Forms

Posted on January 17, 2012 by dan

Beacon Hill, Seattle WA

(Inner/Outer) Space Forms
Thermo-formed Polycarbonate, specialty paint, UV lighting and LED lighting. 2009

18 large-scale glowing sculptural forms suspended from a cobalt blue ceiling in the 2nd deepest light rail tunnel in N. America. Glowing forms inspired by microbes, deep sea creatures and other objects of indeterminate scale. In this station removed from the context of the neighborhood, an other-worldly mix of shapes and forms make us scratch our heads and wonder if we are looking through a microscope or telescope.

Special thanks to Barbara Luecke, Andy Moniz, Karl West, Jeff Silverman, Henry Baghassarian, Art Tech, Deborah Ashland
Architecture: Otak Seattle

Civita Residency

Posted on January 13, 2012 by dan

Civita di Bagnoregio, Umbria, Italy

Italian Residency: Civita di Bagnoregio NIAUSI fellowship 2008. Various projects+documentation

In a remote Italian hilltown, I participated in a NIAUSI residency exploring and documenting the series of caves, cisterns, carved cellars and grottos in this pre-post Eutruscain village. Known as il paese che muore (the dying city), Civita is an interesting ghost town almost frozen in time, acting as a defacto hilltown reliquary. A series of temporary installations and subsequent photographs were created from these caves- many containing “colombari” or dovecotes. In the Middle Ages, these colombari: dove nesting condos were developed to provide protein in the form of eggs and meat at all times, but especially when the towns were cut off due to a siege. Hundreds of these small nesting holes were carefully carved into the tufa to create homes for these birds. Located half way up a cliff face, allowed the birds to have a protected home with ample ventilation and flying access far away from terrestrial predators.

At left is a temporary installation utilizing fluid-filled, illuminated dimigiani (wine and olive oil containers) in the ancient cellar of Astra Zarina and Tony Hayward. This collection of ancient buildings and foundations was the Bishop's complex built on top of pre-eutruscian foundations and sub-terranian spaces now reconfigured into a home and center of NIAUSI. This cellar opens up mid cliffside to the beautiful views of the valley and adjacent hilltown.

Using a telescopic lens on my camera, I photographed the sides of the cliff and with the print in hand was able to climb up the cliffs to locate these ancient abandoned caves.

colombarium mid cliffside

Cave within Civita di Bagnoregio

Etruscan cellar 3 stories under the tuffa. Timelapse experimentation with electroluminescent cable and funerary candles.

Luminaria installation just preceding the "Day of the Dead" celebrations. The candles were recycled and donated to the local cemetery for reuse. The main tower in Civita can be seen in the distance. Special thanks to Miriam Larson, NIAUSI (The Northwest Institute for Architecture and Urban Studies in Italy ), Tony Heywood & Astra Zarina

Antennae Reeds

Posted on January 13, 2012 by dan

Nordheim Court, Seattle, WA

10’x 20’x 35’h; aluminum, LEDs, Urethane Resin, specialty paint; 2003

A dramatic cluster of large tapered poles with frosted tips quake in the wind like giant industrial “reeds” on steroids. The rods are painted fire engine red that fades into a sky gray at the tips. In the evening the tips glow an intense blue to match the color of the Fiber Optic Reed project in the nearby pond. Both projects evoke a sense of transference of knowledge and information (antennae, fiber optics) and the use of high tech materials in juxtaposition to nature.

Antenna Reeds is a companion piece to a project called Fiber Optic Reeds that is also on the Nordheim Court property. Both projects address transmission of knowledge and data as well as the importance of good communication skills...a few of the important things learned in university...as well as linking technology to nature in a very hip urban environment.

Special Thanks to Kevin Furry, The University of Washington, Lorig, Kurt Kiefer, Sign Tech

Mercurial Sky

Posted on January 13, 2012 by dan

Director Park, Portland, Oregon

Mercurial Sky, 2010, Portland OR, Integrated LED lighting, video controller, playback content

In downtown urban park devoid of “nature” and plant material, the specialty lighting added to the giant canopy lights up the park at night with a series of ultra low-resolution videos capturing the movement of natural sequences (eg:moving water, a breeze moving branches, fire, clouds, pulsating jellyfish). Looking from a distance or watching reflections in windows compresses the movement into discernible form.

Special thanks to RAAC, Kristen Calhoun, Keith Lachowicz, Miles Cirillo, The Benya Burnett Consultancy, ZGF , OLIN Landscape Architecture

Portals

Posted on January 13, 2012 by dan

Beacon Hill Tunnel Station, Seattle, WA

Video, monitors, LED lighting, cast glass, Stainless steel, computer control; Sound Transit Beacon Hill Tunnel Station, 2007.

55 glass hemispheric “portholes” create an animated wall in the elevator lobby of the 2nd deepest light rail station in N. America. Behind the hemisphere lenses are video monitors and lighting that simulates portals into outer space, the microbial worlds and the deep sea. Video footage includes source material taken from NASA's Hubble telescope, Deep sea Alvin footage and microscopic video. The images are to prompt the viewer to question the scale of the various images...in the context of being deep inside the center of a hill.

A variety of distorting "holographic" lenses with moving video.
Special thanks to Sound Transit, Barbara Luecke, Andy Moniz, Paul Strong, Steve Monsey

Echo/Raindrops

Posted on January 13, 2012 by dan

Washington State Capitol,Olympia, WA

20’d; black concrete, fiber optic cable; 2005
This project was part of a 6 acre campus Landscape design (design team member) with multiple Art Elements and Art Master-planning. The central plaza contains black concrete and +2000 fiber optic points to create a dynamic kinetic display of echoes and raindrop patterns. Surrounded by planters of black bamboo, this central hub provides a quiet respite to the East Capitol Campus

Waterbottle

Posted on December 12, 2011 by dan

McClintock Dr / Apache Blvd Station, Tempe, AZ

Waterbottle Chandeliers
Neon, water bottles, steel; 2009 Tempe AZ for METRO

A series of illuminated “water bottle” chandeliers marks the top of the Metro Valley light rail station. The new adage: “water is the new gold” draws attention to the preciousness of every water drop in the desert. Enlarged “compact florescent” shape neon tubes, cause the water bottles to glow a range of blue colors, providing a nod to both energy savings and ecological stewardship.

Special Thanks to: METRO, MB FInnerty, Shannon Owen/ Art In Metal, Dave Glover/ Natural Lite Neon

Saguaro Soul

Posted on December 12, 2011 by dan

Dorsey/ Apache Blvd Station, Tempe, AZ

Cast Bronze, chrome, Steel, LED lighting, paint; 2009

Designed for the Metro Valley Rail, a saguaro cactus skeleton forms the basis for this sculpture emerging from its black frame. The cactus (a cliché of the Sonoran desert) is chromed (a fetishized symbol of the AZ car culture) and placed inside a black display box located at the light rail stop in the center of the roadway. At night the cactus is illuminated referencing neon used under cars.

Detail image of chromed cast bronze.

Special thanks to METRO, MB Finnerty, Mickey Laurent/ Highlight Electrical and Tyler Fouts/ Blue Mountain Fine Art, Kevin Furry/ Kiboworks

Sunrise

Posted on December 12, 2011 by dan

Gresham, OR

Rockwood Sunrise
Steel, paint, fiberglass, LED lighting, triggering system, etched glass patterning; 2011

Referencing the 1st Multnomah County Fair, Latino Cultural iconography and the sunrise (from Portland’s perspective), these giant colorful fans produce kinetic moiré effects as one passes by. Triggered by approaching trains, the fans produce dynamic color sequences for 5 minutes before shifting back to aqua colored tips.

Rockwood's ethnically diverse community is composed of many Asian and Latin cultures. This area was also the home to the 1st Oregon State fair. The colors, patterns and spirit of the project seeks to energize and help support a revitalization of the neighborhood.

Etched safety glass patterning for the transit shelters was also a part of this project.

Special thanks to Heavy Industries, Trimet, Kevin Furry/Kiboworks, Craig Nelson/ PMCS, The City of Gresham OR, Mark Mikolavich, Michael Parkhurst, Greg Coons, Jeb Doran, Mary Priester and Lance Erz

Coded Louvers

Posted on December 12, 2011 by dan

Price 101/Apache Blvd Station, Tempe, AZ

Linear edgelit, LED Lighting, photo cell, electronics; 2009

Designed for Metro Valley Rail in Tempe Arizona, this project was inspired by the coded languages used in this area (Navaho Code talkers and Morse code.) A cyphered poem inspired by the area is translated into Morse code and written on the leading face of the louvers of this station. Each side of the station has different colored scheme for way-finding purposes and the “bleed through” of color and ciphered text echos the bright colors of traditional Mexican blankets.

Special thanks to MB Finerty at METRO and Mickey Laurent/ Highlight Electrical

Language Carpet

Posted on December 12, 2011 by dan

Smith Martin/ Apache Blvd Station,Tempe, AZ

Carpet of Languages
HID ellipsoidal projectors, weather enclosures, Gobos, sensors. 2011

There are over 70 languages spoken in this very diverse and international community. This light sculpture is composed of snippets of text taken from letters to grandmothers in 9 of these languages. These phrases are projected onto the walkway to the station- literally walking through script and words from many cultures like walking the halls of the United Nations.

Special Thanks to: METRO/ MB Finnerty, Berndt Stugger and PNTA

IV Fire Columns

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

2'd x 6'h; Glass tubes, IV tubing, water, fire

The Sculptures were designed as "guardian" door pieces for the side of a medical building. Glass columns contain water and IV tubing. Below illuminated gas bubbles rise to the surface and erupt into flame.

Honey Dippers

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Electrical insulator bushings raised and lowered like pistons out of plexiglass tubes filled with glowing electrical transformer fluid to conjure images of giant honey dippers. This was part of an exhibition located in an abandoned steam engine driven electrical power plant. Special Thanks to: Jeremy Edwards, Steve Monsey, Kevin Spitzer, Seattle City Light and the Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs

Drip IV

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Drip IV with light blue light. As this sculpture is illuminated with a fiberoptic lighting system, the color of the IV bags and dripping can be changed with colored filters applied to the lighting engine.

Drip IV white light detail

Drip IV at home

Drip

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

18" x 36" x 75"; Glass, Resin, Steel, Lighting; 2008

Drip I Detail

Corner Drip detail

Drip II

Very special thanks to Martin Blank of Martin Blank Studios and his team.

Tech.Waterscape

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Skowhegan, ME

Florescent tubes, theatrical filters, electronic equipment, lake: ©1991
The project was composed from 6-8 foot long fluorescent tubes 10 feet under water, 100 ft offshore that were colored the hue of blue bioluminescent water creatures. The tubes appeared to float 3″ above the lake surface when the weather was calm. On other occasions, the light provided blue lightening like patterns, and when storms created swells, the waves were filled with volumes of blue light, and then returned to darkness.

Spiral Flames

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Joshua Tree National Forest, CA

60' diameter; PVC Diamond shaped luminaria, candles, desert

Mahalapu Floats

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Kauai, HI

Glass fishing floats, chemiluminescent fluid: ©1997
A timed exposure of the glass floats as they decended down the stream into the ocean.

Japanese fishing floats were filled with chemiluminescent fluid and floated en-masse down a stream back into the ocean from where they were last found.

Lake Ring of Fire

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Skowhegan, ME

Star Landing

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Black Rock Desert, NV

300′ x 250′ , Black Rock Desert Nevada, LEDs, batteries, playa (dried lakebed) floor

Hundreds of green blinking LED’s were buried in the desert floor in a large star landing strip pattern. Not visible in the daytime, the large area became a visual pulsating magnet from many directions in the evening hours.

Special thanks to : Steve Monsey, Jeff Larsen and the installation crew.

P. A. M.

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Black Rock Desert, NV

Post Apocalyptic Mythos was a temporary environmental installation created for the Burning Man Project in an expansive dry lakebed desert. Neon wave forms were top painted to focus blue and turquoise light into the sculpted troughs. Fire erupted from another rippling trough, and a red neon snake matched the other light emitting undulating forms.

Imagery for this project was inspired by a previous exhibition in Prague titled Jeskyne Ohniveho Draka or the "Grotto of the Flame Serpent"

Special thanks to Jeff Larsen and John Lewis

Mandala

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Sunset Cliffs San Diego, CA

diamond luminaria detail.
This fire medicine wheel was created as a temporary installation at the summer solstice on Sunset Cliffs in San Diego.

Veiled Aquifer

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

San Diego, CA

Veiled Aquifer Mist detail. The project was a 3 month public installation.

Trace

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Ucross , Wyoming

Created at the Ucross Foundation artist residency in Ucross Wyoming, a fish-safe Fluorescent water tracing dye is added to a river to make the invisible currents visible. The toxic looking (antifreeze colored) dye transform this beautiful prairie river into something more curious and almost sinister for albeit a brief time. The art-action reveals the usually invisible patterns of water movement, eddies and currents. This dye is safe for fish and wildlife but creates a beautiful and highly disturbing ephemeral gesture within the landscape.

Night Fire Swim

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Skowhegan, ME

NIGHT FIRE SWIM was a temporary interactive sculpture in a beautiful lake in Skowhegan Maine. A 10' wall of gas-filled white bubbles was created under water. At the surface they erupted into 3' h flames above the lake surface. The audience/participants were urged to swim to the fire. Under the surface, when they passed (swam) through the white wall of bubbles, the sound was like breaking icicles as they looked up to see the fire burning over head. The viewer/ participants then, being wet, could approach the flame without fear of being burnt. They could pass their arms through the bubbles allowing the flame to crawl over the arm without being burnt. Then they learned to control the fire patterns by manipulating the bubbles' direction under the surface of the water. This project was designed to somewhat bypass the traditional cerebral cortex and to access that more primitive aspect of our brain stem... allowing us to access a more visceral and direct experience.

Oscillating Field

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

125' x 250': lasers, fluorescent fiberglass, paint: 2009 Photo credit: Cory Scherrer

OSCILLATING FIELD is a temporary sculptural installation sponsored by Sound Transit. There are 11 different programs that sequence over a 35 minute loop. In the daytime it takes the form of a grass field, a hedgehog's back or a glowing yellow mist, while at night it transforms into a thousand surfaces for the dynamic play of an emerald green laser. Every night between 6pm and midnight, the lasers illuminate the sculpture with a range of dynamic patterns and animations.

The exploration of topography and dynamic patterning over a large space transforms a once desolate parking lot into a delight of light, movement and magic. The project is composed of over 3300 florescent fiberglass stakes cut in 6" increments from 3-8' high. The top 6" of every stake is painted with florescent Orange "construction" paint, allowing the "skin of the field to be clearly discerned.

The project is at the site of a new Sound Transit Light Rail station, and the sculpture was funded to activate the construction site and celebrate the kick off of the new station. Photo Credit: Corey Scherrer

Deep special thanks to: Sound Transit, Barbara Luecke, Jeff Silverman at Nth Degree Creative, Corey Scherrer, David Marine, Steven Hudosh, Kevin Spitzer, Andy Moniz, Jo Moniz, Ryan Wong, Berndt Stugger

Of Mice and Men

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Lighting Design for The Empty Space Theatre Company, Seattle

Invisible Ink

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Invisible Ink, a show about the life and mystery of Mata Hari. A touring set production created for the House of Dames Productions. This production debuted at On the Boards, SeattleSet design.

The Guilded Garden of Patcheww

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Djinn

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Djinn Scenography and design concepts created for House of Dames and Annex Theatre. This project "kidnapped" the audience and drove them on a chartered bus with blacked out windows to an abandoned military base. The audience was moved through a number of different spaces within the building and sometimes separated from each other.

Selecting giant wherehouse spaces for the project, allowed for large moving set pieces and monumental scale juxtapositons. This image shows a giant 30' x30' smoke filled projection screen that moved 100' towards the audience via a giant overhead crane.

Djinn eyes

: Creepy industrial CIA like military office spaces created as part of the set environments

Sub Rosa

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Sub Rosa Set and Lighting Designs created for Alice B Theatre & House of Dames Productions at the Pioneer Square Theatre.

SubRosa- Scenography for this project created surreal performance environments and set up unusual audience-performance relationships throughout the piece.

Goblin Market

Posted on December 6, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

This project was for a production at ACT theater in Seattle. The set and lighting design was constantly shifting in fluid, dreamlike environments. Here, glowing fiber optic reeds emerge from the floor of the stage set.

Illum. / Enlighten.

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

12'l x 8'w x 12'h; Mixed Media, color filters, fluorescent tubes, wire, candles, dirt, dry pigment; ©1992 This installation uses various forms of "illumination" referencing earth mounds, religious candle lighting and quantum physics. An artistic meditation on the intersections between quantum physics, Victorian color theory, Indigenous religions and Eastern and Western religion candle lighting rituals.

Flame Serpent

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Prague, Czech Republic

Multi-room installation, snakes, fire, music, incense; ©1995 The Grotto of the Flame Serpent (Jeskyne Ohniveho Draka) was a solo show at the 13th century catacombs attached to the Bohemian Arts Gallery. Various rooms told the story of a fictitious religion's creation myth. Highlights of rooms: SNAKE CAVERN- The stone carved out room was covered with 4" of black sand. Partially uncovered orange neon snakes illuminated the room. The CENTRAL ROOM contained a live snake tabernacle, cast glass snakes/ fulgurites (fused glass shapes created when lighting strikes the sand) and other oracular devices, The ORACLE CHAMBER (in distance). The ORACLE CHAMBER contained a floor was made into a pond 1 foot deep. Subaquious gas jets provided a constant flame that shifted into random patterns as the bubbles broke and caught fire on the surface. This room was very hot and sauna like

Interior of the live snake tabernacle. The interior of the box was carved, burnt and gold leafed with the fictitious mythological imagery.

Part of the underground catacombs, the SNAKE CAVERN contains red neon snakes under a bed of black foundry sand.

Hydrolux

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Prague, Czec Republic

A series of 2' diameter water lenses filled with colored dyes. Some of the lenses utilized low voltage lights to project and focus lights onto the gallery walls. Other lenses (not shown) used artist-made oil lamps to project the moving patterns of fire-light onto the walls. Referencing ancient lenses, lace-making magnifying glasses and limelight projectors, light and flame sources close to the glass magnify and direct the light to the wall. Victorian healing color and light theory matched specific colors to symptoms. Standing in the colored light was said to heal you of your condition. This practice led to the popularization of stain glass windows in residential homes in America and the UK.

Three Rings

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Smash

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

5' d; wrecking balls, gallery wall, contact microphones, subwoofers, and sound modification equipment; 2001

The final gallery exhibition was inspired by the imminent destruction of the Consolidated Works Gallery. The 2- 5' diameter "wrecking balls" hang on giant chains on either side of an exhibition wall. The wall and balls have microphones in them so as the audience smashes the balls through the wall (destroying the wall) the tone of the balls striking the walls or each other are then modified and deepened through amplified subwoofers and re--verb that echoes the resonant "smash" throughout the building.

Special Thanks to: Meg Shiffler,John Nissen, Pacific Industrial Supply, Aaron Welsh, Kathleen Sidwell, and the Conworks installation crew

Generation

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Many contorted “street light sperm” danced through the “generation facility” of the Georgetown Steam Power plant. A giant “cleaving egg” projection recounted the turning wheel of the steam plant’s engines as well as a egg dividing.Views of the complex overlapping patterns can be seen from the upper floor. The circle of light had rotating bisecting lines, mimicing a cleaving egg as well as referencing the giant flywheels in the other room.

Special Thanks to: Jeremy Edwards, Lynne Moore and the SCL Steel Crew,Dura Coatings Inc, Kevin Spitzer, Omar, Jeramy Brennan McGuigan, Allen Diego, Laurie Geissinger,Seattle City Light and the Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs. Photo Credit: Sidney Genette.

Vibrating Indigo

Posted on December 5, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

The two linked projects for the Seattle Artopia event, Vibrating Indigo and Spatial Matrix 599nm transforms the old brewhouse using theatrical gels to isolate the light entering the space to the frequency of one color. Besides the visceral effect (perceived or actual) of bathing a singular wavelength of color on our body, a psyco-physical experience called “retinal fatigue” will happen if one stays in the room for a few minutes. As you exit the space, the complementary color will color the world outside creating the perception of the world being bathed in golden light. The project also references ancient chromatotherapy theories and Egyptian Temples at Heliopolis.

Spatial Matrix, the 599nm project utilizes repeating dashed patterns in space that form corn-row effects and interference patterns both amplifying and limiting a 3d- space. The sunlight filtered from the theatrical gel covered windows causes the black rope to disappear and the "Safety Orange" paint to fluoresce and enhance the floating effect.

SPECIAL THANKS to Jordan Howland, Gabe, and the great install crew. The project was created for Artopia in the Georgetown neighborhood in Seattle WA

Grotesque

Posted on December 4, 2011 by dan

Suyama Space, Seattle, WA

The word grotesque comes from the word grotto, the distortion or warping of an image that is reflected in the water of a cave. The title is further defined with the addition of Arabesque: an elaborative application of repeating geometric forms that often echo the forms of nature. Here the arabesque framework articulates a repeating pattern of contour lines that define the interior of the cave, complete with stalactites. The contour lines glow with electroluminescent ribbons of aqua colored lighting mined from rare-earth phosphors. Dripping water distorts the architectural arabesque into a grotesque dance of light and dark.

GROTESQUE ARABESQUE is an immersive art environment transforming Suyama Space into an otherworldly, light-filled cave created by turquoise-colored electroluminescent tape on meticulously bent, contour-drawn flat bar steel. The glowing cave ceiling is amplified by and reflected in a large reflecting pond below. A saturated indigo illuminates the space through dark blue filters covering the gallery skylights, while a 25 foot wide mirror multiples and further distorts the experience.

Grotesque Arabesque was inspired by Corson’s visits to a series of caves in the Yucatan as well as Etruscan grottos, catacombs, and cisterns he explored during a residency in Civita di Bagnoregio, Italy in 2008. Caves hold an extreme fascination for the artist, primarily because they represent for him a threshold into another world, connecting us to the unconscious and to the dark mystery of Nature.

I want to extend my deep thanks and appreciation for the following people who without their help and support this project would not have happened. Beth Sellars, George Suyama, Jym Snedeker, David Verkade, Paul Strong, Matt Sellars, Ron Fujimoto of Fujimoto Landscaping, Jason Thompson, Thomas Carrol, Jordan Howland, Gabe Stern, Michele Lynn, Jerry Raitzer, Miriam Larson, Sven Larson, Todd Metten, Dave Meisner, Berndt Stugger, Tom Harman, Tom Mattausch, Jay Deguchi, Ric Peterson, 4culture, Barbara Goldstein, and all those at Suyama Peterson Deguchi who kindly endured the long build and installation.

Grotesque Arabesque is made possible through funding from 4 Culture Arts Sustained Support, City of Seattle Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, the Suyama Space Friends, and was curated by Beth Sellars in partnership with Space.City. Artist support is provided by a special project grant from 4Culture. Photo credits: Frank Huster, Will Austin and Dan Corson

Snaking Root

Posted on December 4, 2011 by dan

North Bend, WA

A Large complete root system with attached illuminated argon and krypton gas filled root-forms are suspended from the beams and ceiling of the Lobby area. The "neon" tubes are large (25 mm) and provide soft, suspended volumes of light to flow through twisting and contorted tubing. The suspended root masses also act as a link to the visitor center's sod roofs, and reference the history of the underground living spaces of some native tribes of the area.The network of gaseous argon speaks to the flowing of water and the technology necessary to keep the watershed operational and the generation of electricity.

Krypton filled "neon" tubes with hand coated phospors

THE DENDRITIC ROOT FLOOR is a sandblasted and stained concrete floor. The pattern is of a stylized image of a cross section of a vine maple root system rendered in dark organic colors.

Funding: SPU % for Arts Program, Administrated by the Seattle Arts Commission. Architects and Landscape Architects: Jones and Jones Architects, Lori Nelson project architect, Nancy Roddle, project landscape architect.

Skagit Streaming

Posted on December 4, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

SKAGIT STREAMING is a complex multi-site project providing a window into the Skagit River system (Seattle’s hydroelectric facility) via fiber optic cable- from 150 miles away. “Live” Streamed video images (from 3 cameras): Riverside views, underwater footage and microscopic images are then sent into various city buildings, the WWW and projected nightly 40' across on the side of a large parking garage. The www aspect of the project provides streaming video, feedback and educational information. This project aspires to connect the downtown urban core with the source of its electricity and quiet cycles of nature. At the same time, it acts as a sort of "canary in a coal mine" by monitoring strategic fish populations for the public.

Skagit Streaming "fish-cam" on the Bon Marche' parking garage. Special Thanks Steve Monsey, broadcast engineer , Vicki Moulder, web designer, Miguel Edwards- video editing,and many others: FUNDERS and SPECIAL THANKS Administered by the Seattle Arts Commission

In the Municipal Building where the Mayor and City Council has their offices, the video was shown next to the elevator to help remind our elected officials about our critical relationship to the source of our electricity and water.

the www.skagitstreaming.net web site included grass roots salmon education links, education site and project information.

Resin Rods

Posted on December 3, 2011 by dan

WA State E. Capitol Campus, Olympia, WA

RESIN RODS- are embeded through the cement walls acting as dimenstional "skylights" . These "skylights" are developed with distinctive color patterns and arangement patterns for each of the 8 stair towers on the Olympia East Capital Campus.

Each tower grouping had matching shapes in warm and cool colors, that also matched way-finding neon banding on top of the tower

Resin Rods inside, flush with the wall

Blue-Green Resin Rods. All rods are flush in the "touch zone" and become dimensional above....extending up to 36" beyond the wall.

Round resin rods ranging from 3-14" in diameter

WA State Capital dome in the back. Resin Rods extending out up to 36"

Root

Posted on November 30, 2011 by dan

Bellevue, WA

This giant tree was originally harvested in the 1800's from this region. The old growth tree root system is cast in Bronze and treated with a special hematite silver paint. It metaphorically speaks of transparency of government and exposing the hidden infrastructure (hidden roots) of the city (electric, water, sewage etc) and relates to historical/ecological roots of the city.

Exquisite detail of root textures cast in bronze. Fabricaiton by Blue Mountain Fine Art, Baker City OR. Engineering by Mike Valley of MKA, City of Bellevue, 4Culture

A companion piece directly behind the bronze root is a living "nurse log" tree. The living tree (growing out of the trunk of an old root stump) will grow and mark time as the silver root is forever frozen in both time and space.

Infrastructure

Posted on November 28, 2011 by dan

Seattle, Tuckwilla, Seatac, WA

Sound Transit Infrastructure Projects
Golden Striped Finials cap the OCS poles at the Sound Transit Tukwilla Station 2007

The BANGLES were applied to 15 special poles adjacent to the stations in Seattle's MLK Valley. They are noticeable when the trains slow down approaching the station. Each station has its own signature color. This project was done in collaboration with Norie Sato. 2007

The REEDS are distinctive pole tips that identify the MLK Valley as a special linked community. The tips gracefully curve and blend the dark poles into a metalic sky blue and then to a silver tip. All the tips point West- to the Puget Sound- and to the sunset. The gracefull REEDS tips are part of system-wide art projects developed in collaboration with Norie Sato 2007

SHIMMERING SHADOWLINES Steel, mylar; 2007. 9 massively tall support columns are articulated with shimmering mylar dots that not only conjure images of water flowing down a trough, but also refer to the “Sparklett’s bottled water trucks” signs from the 1950’s. The kinetic and reflective mylar dots enhance the feeling of motion and anticipation as travelers in vehicles on the adjacent highway move past the dramatic Guideway columns that carry passengers to the airport. This project was also done in collaboration with Norie Sato.

Blue Duwamish

Posted on November 28, 2011 by dan

Tuckwila, WA

LED’s, electronics, steel, train signaling system

The only Sound Transit light rail crossing over water is celebrated by these blue LED lights turning on as the trains are crossing the Duwamish bridge. The curving light supports complement the curved safety railing, making reference to wave patterns and salmon ribs. This project was done in collaboration with Norie Sato.

Special thanks to Sound Transit, Carol McDonald, Barbara Luecke, Andy Moniz, Kevin Furry/ Kiboworks,

Safety Spires

Posted on November 28, 2011 by dan

Seattle, WA

Over 200 Overhead Contact System poles with specialty paint and spire-shaped finials. The poles within Sound Transit Maintenance Facility are striped with black and “safety green” paint. The artwork is inspired by a prehistoric plant indigenous to this region – commonly known as the horsetail or Scouring Rush. The patterning on the horsetail, along with allusions to bamboo and spring growth seemed evocative of the renewal, maintenance and caring for the system taking place at the facility.

Safety Spires in front of the Maintanance Bays at the Sound Transit O&M Facility in Seattle WA

This project created in collaboration with Norie Sato. Photo: Richard L. Baron

Rain Drums

Posted on November 28, 2011 by dan

North Bend, WA

RAIN DRUM COURTYARD Cedar River Watershed Visitors Center, North Bend WA The space between 3 buildings houses a wild overgrown forest floor with a slow moving stream and a canopy of tall, thin and lacy vine maples. Interspersed between the trees are 17 "rain drums" that play the raindrops as they fall from the sky and drip from the branches. When the sky is dry, there is a set of computer controlled water drippers that create a set of changing rhythms.

Special Thanks to the Cedar River Watershed staff, Seattle Arts Commission, Ruri Yampolsky, Barbara Goldstein, Paul Sorey, Chris Holland, Nancy Rottle, Lorri Nelson, Marie Ruby, Tom Mattausch