This site-specific artwork involves projecting light from outside through the existing industrial windows to cast a single, landscape-format projection on the inside wall. Suspended within the gallery, a transparent disc and a replica of the window grille revolve slowly in the beams of light. Both are constructed from polarising filters on one side and a sheet of PET on the reverse.
Polarising filters incorporated into the windowpanes interact with the turning elements, causing the projection to change as the light hits the materials at different angles. When the PET is situated between the two filters, brilliant colours appear in the projection. When the filters in the windows and the hanging elements align, on the other hand, the projected light fades to grey or black.
This effect results from the way polarisers react with birefringent materials like PET, which split light into multiple rays that move at slightly different angles and speeds. The split rays then pass through the second polarising filter, causing the light to appear colourful. As the materials shift in relation to one another, new hues are allowed through or blocked. The ever-changing combinations of materials and the shifting perspectives of the viewers create a mesmerising light projection. Viewers moving through the installation contribute their own shadows to the abstract display as they block parts of the light and explore the mechanism behind the work.
Artwork details | |
Title |
The lure of looking through a polarised window of opportunities |
Year |
2025 |
Materials |
Spotlights, polarisation filters, PET, steel, wood, motors, electrical ballast |