Troika, Falling Light

FALLING LIGHT, (2010)
5 m long x 5 m wide x 3.60 high
50 mechanisms, Swarovski Crystal lenses, LEDs,
Custom build controls

each mechanism: 69 cm (L) x 11.8 cm (D) x 50 cm (H)

'150 years after Sir Isaac Newton 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,
1. - 5. DECEMBER 2010

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Tags:

• Troika
• Falling Light
• Art
• Design
• Design Miami
• Swarovski kinetic
• light The Arts Led Lights