Client: Northrop
Location: Minneapolis, MN, United States
Completion date: 2015
Artwork budget: $7,000
Project Team
Art Consultant
Rachel Stone
rachelrstone@yahoo.com
Art Consultant
Paul Spencer
Industry Resource
Rod Larson
Artist
Philip Noyed
Overview
The Rainbow Pyramid Light Experience was designed for a one-night Northern Light Festival for people to see the pyramid from far away and then enter into the pyramid and experience the light and geometry directly. It is 20' x 20' x 20' and constructed of clear acrylic tubes, LED lights, copper connectors, metal internal frame and a floor made of mirrored mylar film under acrylic and on plywood.
Goals
As a Public Art Installation, the primary goal was to provide an accessible light experience that people of all ages could enjoy. On a deeper level, the Rainbow Pyramid Light Experience was an exploration using all the colors of the rainbow as both beautiful and inclusive, but also as frequencies that help to align chakras. The LED lights were programmed to go slowly move through the colors of the rainbow while music also played that correspondingly went through the sound frequencies of the colors/chakras. This work also investigated light as a medium passing through ceiling acrylic tubes that made circles at the bottom of each tube in the ceiling and how the light reflected in the pyramid tubes. There was a mirrored floor that people could see themselves in the pyramid that also made the illusion of a diamond. Finally, this installation explored the power of the pyramid which acts as an amplifier of energy, a receiver and a transmitter. The white capstone provides the intersection between earth and the sky. All of these elements integrated into a design that thousands of people came to experience and enjoy on all these levels.
Process
I developed the vision for this installation and spent considerable amount of time experimenting with how to allow light to be a structure by using acrylic tubes and LED lights. There was a great deal of mathematics to determine how to build the structure and order the right amount of materials. I worked with a small team to cut and drill the tubes and insert the LED light strips into the tubes, create the floor and assemble. I also worked with people who understood how to power and synchronize the LED lights effectively. This team then installed the Rainbow Light Experience at Northrop the day of the Northern Lights festival.
Additional Information
My intention was to was to utilize the sacred geometric dynamics of the pyramid and the color and music frequencies to create a space where people would feel a sense of joy and alignment through experiencing the light, color, sound and sculptural experience of the Rainbow Pyramid. I was gratified how delighted people were as they experienced the installation. I believe that with today's technology of light and sound systems that we can create installations that are both awesome art experiences and healing spaces. Light/color and sound installations provide the opportunity to revitalize body, mind and spirit.