Light, as we usually see it, is an element that lacks mass, to treat it under the laws of gravity is somehow magical. The laws that describe the behaviour of light are hardly understandable because it neither behaves as body or as a wave. As Einstein wrote concerning the wave-particle duality: “We have two contradictory pictures of reality; separately neither of them fully explains the phenomena of light, but together they do”. In this project, we have built a computer simulator that reduces this extraordinary phenomenon to the simple classical mechanical laws.
Comprised of 78 tungsten bulbs connect to a rack of 4 channel DMX dimmers, the installation is controlled by a physics simulator built with Unity3D. A piezo electric sensor situated in the first bulb captures the force of a tap, generating a light particle that moves along the loop. The initial impulse is regulated by the strength of the tap, creating a very natural interaction. When one hits hard light moves fast and can overcome the force of gravity, when one hits the bulb softly light falls slowly along the loop. All the shades of the energy are reflected in the trajectory of the light.
ABOUT THE ARTISTS
Espadaysantacruz studio is a creative studio specialised in generating new interactive and visual experiences. Based in Madrid since 2008, we design projects where technology allows us to bring creative ideas to a new aesthetic dimension.
The studio is composed by professionals with different backgrounds in the fields of information technology, audiovisual creation, photography and cultural management.
The three principal components of the studio are:
[Miguel Espada] Ph.D in Logic, CWI Amsterdam. Professor at Universidad Complutense of Madrid, since 2005. He’s specialised in interaction design and creative computing.
[Juan Santa-Cruz] Philosophy Graduate. Since 2006 he teaches lighting and image analysis. He has worked as director of photography and film maker in advertising campaigns and music videos
[Nerea Goikoetxea] Humanities Graduate from the Universidad de Navarra. She is cultural manager and curator, specialized in photography and emerging art.
