Anyone can change the way the sculpture looks through their phones

Mar 18, 2014 12:48 GMT  ·  By

Vancouver takes the prize for hosting the coolest art project of the year so far with an interactive installation in the middle of the city. 

Floating above Convention Center, the Unnumbered Sparks was built with featherweight fibers. The sculpture was anchored to the roof of a nearby skyscraper to commemorate 30 years since the first TED Conference.

As mentioned above, the entire thing is interactive, meaning that anyone passing by can alter it in some way. All they need to do is use their phones and Google Chrome.

The sculpture basically incorporates giant Chrome browser windows that are displayed with the help of five high definition projectors. Anyone that owns a smartphone can collaborate to the project by creating colors and waves on the surface.

If you’re passing by, you have to whip out your phone, launch a web browser, whether Chrome or any other, access a website and select a color. Once this is done, you can use your fingers to trace paths and patterns along the surface of the device, which are projected on the sculpture in real time as beams of light.

The sculpture's colors change thanks to visitors
The sculpture's colors change thanks to visitors
“Art and technology are continuously evolving together, and we hope that this project showcases the opportunity for mobile devices and the web to play a part in that evolution. We all carry devices in our pockets that have the power to connect with people around the world, but rarely do we get a chance to use this incredible power to connect and create with the people standing next to us. With Unnumbered Sparks, we hope to turn strangers into collaborators, working together to create a single piece of art on this amazing canvas,” said Jenny Ramaswammy, from Google’s Creative Lab team.

Hundreds of people can collaborate at the same time and the result looks absolutely stunning, with the best part being that it is always changing and that people can become part of such a project.

The project is a partnership between artist Janet Echelman and Aaron Koblin, Google’s creative director. The artist explained just how she makes her sculptures and the troubles they had putting it up in the middle of such an active city as Vancouver.

“For years I’ve been exploring how to let people become part of the artwork and now, with Aaron’s interactive art people can actually draw and paint with light; they become co-creators with us,” Echelman said, clearly enthusiastic about the process.

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The sculpture's colors change thanks to visitors
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