For more than 15 years, Jen Lewin Studio has created large interactive pieces for the public and, this time, Lewin utilized technology to bring groups of people together with light. The Pool is a giant, durable circular installation filled with small round pads that encourage group participation and fun. The studio explains, “By entering the pool, you enter a world where play and collaborative movement create swirling effects of light and color. Imagine a giant canvas where you can paint and splash light collaboratively.”
The installation is composed of 106 interactive platforms, set up in a larger circular form. The pads communicate wirelessly and react with each other based on user interactions. Visitors can control which lights are illuminated by stepping, jumping, leaning, and bouncing on top of the pads. Foot location, pressure, and speed determine the intensity and patterns of color, and as a person moves, light radiates out in all directions.
Group participation creates a sea of infinitely swirling and changing lights that scatter across the surface of the installation. Intentionally or not, visitors experience a dynamic interaction with each other as they send patterns of light back and forth to each other. To see the piece in action, you can watch as visitors hop, skip, and jump in the video below.
