Art as Interaction for Impact

The Illuminating Nexus: XR, AI, and Architectural Synergy, by Nefeli Manoudaki, Iason Paterakis and the UCSB MAT Department

Projection based art is a fairly new art form and is unique in its ability to engage people to actually become the art. Through touch and vision, people or objects can be transformed and transported in ways that delight, awe and inspire. We use this art to become aware of relationships and impacts that might be invisible otherwise. 



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This is the second post in a two part series exploring why Unite to Light hosts an annual light-based art exhibition and fundraiser called Unite to Light the Night. The event invites guests to tangibly explore their connections to light and energy, while also building awareness for Unite to Light’s mission, and raising funds to send solar lights and solar power to people living without electricity. Unite to Light chose to do an art show over a typical fundraiser due to art’s ability to portray experiences beyond words. Here we explore how five projection based art pieces used interactive experiences to help people explore their relationship to light and power. For the first post in this series, go here. ​

Reflections by UDOTAI

Reflections by Udo Gyene and Tai Rodrig (UDOTAI) invited guests to alter the patterns of light refracted off a pool of water onto the opposite wall. The pair described the piece as a “live mathematical projection show inspired by the fluidity and unpredictability of our connections to the natural world.” UDOTAI aimed for the piece to emphasize the “essential role of illumination in our lives” and portray our ability to “influence and distribute light,” a central tenet of Unite to Light’s mission. In interacting with the piece by touching the water’s surface, guests could watch as their actions projected a ripple effect onto the wall as art they helped create. ​

Thermal Gestures by Marco Pinter

Thermal Gestures by artist Marco Pinter showcased our ability to feel and experience light. The piece transformed the heat of the attendees’ bodies and breath into light that was then reflected back at them. Pinter wanted the art to emphasize that “light is not only something that can be seen but something that can be felt and experienced.” By turning light from an abstract idea into something tactile, Pinter demonstrates our ability to make light as well as affect it. ​

Chronolux by Amun Levy consisted of a rear projection screen mirroring the audience's movement with delayed motion capture projections, allowing guests to uniquely augment their form in real time. Levy aimed for the work to “emphasize the metamorphasis from the past to the present, proving how light can illuminate an individual’s experience and perception of self in unique ways.” Guests interacted with the piece by dancing, twirling, and moving with each other. One attendee commented that it was incredible how it "felt like a dream that was represented in waking life" enabling her to interact with a fluid version of herself.  The piece displayed the interaction between creativity and light, as well as how light can engage people and bring them together positively.

Chronolux by Amun Levy

Artist Timothy Wood displayed two pieces based on participation: Fabric and Kinetrope: Roots. To experience Fabric, guests donned 3D glasses and used a motion-tracked glove to manipulate ‘fabric’ projected onto the wall. Wood stated that the piece was meant to “empower the moving body to shape its surroundings.” Like the other artworks, Fabric emphasized how an individual can shape and alter their surroundings while also allowing guests to interact with light in new ways. In Roots, plant-like creatures that responded to real-time motion were projected at the center of the event space. Wood drew inspiration from plants and their use of light to grow, live, and eat. When discussing art, he stated that “Light is a form of aliveness,” which is something to be celebrated. 

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Kinetrope:Roots by Timothy Wood

Fabric by Timothy Wood

Each art piece spotlighted the role of the individual in making substantial change, whether it be a small action causing a larger ripple effect, an unseen interaction influencing another person, or planting a seed for the future. At Unite to Light, we believe each person can affect the world and we hope to inspire everyone to light the world with their actions. ​

Learn More About Unite to Light the Night