Part Garden, Part Light Sculpture, a Dynamic Installation Creates an Urban Oasis
An urban garden sounds dreamy in theory. But climbing ivy and vine-draped trellises are difficult to come by in downtown Chicago. Unless, that is, the garden is digital.
The dynamic light installation at 151 North Franklin uses gentle movement and dappled light to create an organic and contemplative feeling in the building’s second floor garden terrace. A “trellis” of vertical light bars and brushed metal fins, the textured structure plays dynamically with animation and light for an experience that’s part digital, part nature.
Two main media modes are featured on the light trellis: Living Wall and Special Event. Living Wall mode creates dynamically produced animations that react to local weather data, evoking the effects that sun, temperature and precipitation have on plant life. Wind acts as a disruptive layer that plays on top of the other weather patterns, causing the light and color display to shift.
Special Event mode connects the local community through Chicago’s celebration of holidays and events—for example, PRIDEChicago or New Year's Eve—with specific color patterns and animation styles that create over 54 different media permutations.
