Finding Crystal.

Project Summary

Crystal is lost within a sea of flashing lights. She is surrounded by a 6.4×12.8ft cubic lattice structure. She reacts to motion and touch. Walk through the interactive cube that holds Crystal hostage. Can you find her before she fades, and becomes one with the cube?

Physical Description

Finding Crystal is an interactive installation that takes the principles of Crystallography and Bravais Lattices, and uses these principles to create a structural lattice cube. This cube is made of 0.4×0.4ft cubic pieces, fixed on top of, and next to each other to create a 6.4×12.8×12.8ft cube. I have chosen to use a cubic body centered lattice, removing the given structural frame, to allow the internal arrangement to determine the overall structure. The structure is made of steel spheres, steel rods and motion sensor LED lights. Each 0.4×0.4ft structure holds 3 spheres, 4 rods and 3 LED light. These pieces are put together in a puzzle manner to create the entirety of the structure. The art piece is modular and can be easily assembled on site.

 

Interactivity & Mission

Finding Crystal takes principles from science and combines it with design to create a truly interactive art piece. It uses the science behind crystal lattice structures to produces a structural modular that encompasses the principles of crystallography. Each modular is sized specifically to produce a lightweight structure, reflecting back on the idea of a crystal flake and its lightweight properties.

The entire structure consists of 16384 0.4×0.4ftcubic lattice pieces, with 49152 LED lights. This creates a platform for the experience. The cube is programmed to displays ghost like figures that walk “through” the cube, the figures use human motion to “follow” or “escape” the users. This evokes a form of playfulness between the figure, which is Crystal, and its users.

Philosophy

Crystal is a human. The cube is a symbol of an AI being that is attempting to deceive Crystal. Crystal is trying to escape the hold of the cube, but she is finding it extremely difficult to, the cube keeps misleading her into thinking that she is dependent on it. This piece explores addiction, in any form, by using the cube to confine the users perception of Crystal. Crystal doesn’t believe she can escape the cube, but ultimately, she is the only one that can help herself escape it.

I am deploying this piece in hope that it creates a curiosity behind the connection between technology, science and design. As well as creating a better understanding of someone who is in Crystals position. I’d like to evoke a desire to take these principles and explore with them, I want this piece to inspire and motive people to be creative. I want it to awaken the users curiosity. I want the user to want to explore, understand and interact with the artwork, and take this curiosity further by exploring their own artistic expression.

The intention of this piece is for it to be used as an interactive play experience. In the end, we are just trying to save crystal from herself.