My final project for light art creates a mystical looking display on the ceiling that looks like a portal to a magical world. The viewer controls the display as they rotate a plate to change the colors and patterns being displayed
The original goal of this project was to have a ceiling display that was similar to looking through a kaleidoscope. The goal was to allow multiple viewers to see a display similar to a kaleidoscope to make a piece that is traditionally isolated to one viewer at a time into a more social piece. While the idea of having the display on a wall was played with, it was purposely kept to the ceiling to make the experience similar to stargazing.
Overall the original idea of this project was accomplished but, it had some changes made to better fit the goal experience and changes based on what the materials were able to do.
The display has multiple parts to it, a major one being the base it sits on. This base is made out of cardboard and foam. The foam part holds the light source of a flashlight in place underneath the cardboard part. There are markings on the foam to allow the cardboard part to be placed correctly on top of it. On top of the flash light is a big clear gem which helps create an effect described later in this post.
The cardboard part blocks the light from all but one part in order to focus it. It also serves as a holder for the dish of gems. To hold the dish in place as it is being rotated, small black gems were placed to center the dish each time it is placed on the base. The base was kept to look like a cardboard box as it makes the viewer feel as if they are opening this box that opens up a portal to an unknown world. It was also meant to contrast the elegant look of both the gems and the portal, making the viewer think about how something so boring looking can contain something more.
Another major part, if not the most important part, was the dish of gems. The dish is a standard petri dish, while the gems are 4.5mm arcylic that were sorted out from a package of 10000.
An element of depth was created in the display through the interaction of the light when shining through multiple prisms. The big gem over the flash light starts this effect and reflects the light through the smaller gems. This depth made it seem like a portal someone could jump into, thus giving the project it’s name. The multiple prisms interacting a long with the slight angle of the base allowing for some gem movement created the kaleidoscope effect without the major use of gravity that an actual kaleidoscope uses.
Originally, the main effect of the rotation was going to be the pattern changing. However, I was given a dish that was divided into four sections which allowed for separation between the gems.
Since color can affect a person’s mood, I wanted to give the viewer the opportunity to control the mood of the room. To do this, I experimented with how the colors from the gems were displayed and then created different color pallets to fit moods. Pink is a color that creates a playful mood while green creates a relaxing mood. The red based mixture is meant to create a warm environment while the blue based one does the opposite.
Rotating the plate also creates an effect that looks like water moving while it mixes between the color mixtures to create an unknown mix.
Overall, I am happy with how this projected turned out. The challenges I faced during this project were not ones I would have expected when I started. The major one being the issues with getting the materials as finding gems of this type is harder than I would have expected. If I had more time I would try to get more gem of different sizes and colors to play around with the prisms interacting. However, I am still happy with this project and will be keeping it around for more people to enjoy.