50 mechanisms; Swarovski Crystal lenses, LEDs, custom build controls
Each mechanism: 69 cm (L) x 11.8 cm (D) x 50 cm (H)
Installation: 5.0m (L) x 5.0m (W) x 3.60 (H)
'Over a century after Sir Isaac Newton had dissected the phenomenon of the rainbow, English poet John Keats commented that science had robbed nature and the rainbow of its spectacle by reducing its notion to prismatic colours. ‘Falling Light’ challenges this belief, with a captivating cinematographic interplay between crystal prisms and the preternatural experience they are able to create.
50 ceiling suspended mechanical devices each incorporating a custom cut Swarovski crystal optical lens, a computer programmed motor and a white LED, comprise TROIKA’s installation ‘Falling Light’.
The white-painted metal armatures rise in syncopation by rotating cam before gravity releases them earthward, activating the LED to move away, closer to the crystal lens. The lens acts as a prism, transforming through diffraction, the LED’s white light into a rainbow myriad, in turn creating the rhythmical ebb and flow of the floor-strewn droplets.
Experiencing small drops of light falling from the ceiling onto the gallery floor, the visitor is immersed in a shower of light, each droplet encircled by a vibrant halo of rainbow colours. In chorus, the humming sound of the mechanism is audible – light and sound meld into a single immersive and multi sensory experience, enforcing TROIKA’s agenda that science does not destroy, but rather discovers poetry in the patterns of nature.'
Text written by Suzanne Trocmé
Commissioned by Swarovski Crystal Palace for Design Miami,
01 – 05 December 2010
Exhibition history:
'Digital Crystal'
Curated by Nina Due
Design Museum
London, UK
5 Sep, 2012 - 13 Jan, 2013
'British Design 1948–2012'
Curated by Christopher Breward and Chislaine Wood
V&A, London
31 Mar – 12 Aug 2012
'The Space between Now and Then'
Curated by Natalie Kovacs and Cristobal Riestra
OMR Gallery
Mexico City
24 Nov, 2011 – 24 Feb, 2012
'Curious Minds'
Curated by Alex Ward
Israel Museum
Jerusalem
16 Dec, 2011 – 23 Apr, 2012
'After the bit-rush - Design in a Post Digital Age'
Curated by Angelique Spaninks
MU Eindhoven
The Netherlands
22 Oct – 23 Dec 2011
ARTHK 2011
Input Output Gallery
Hong Kong
28 May - 25 Jul, 2011