Voyage’ installation consists of three hundred floating paper boats, encasing colored dynamic LED lights that come alive at night, putting on a spectacular light show.
Aether and Hemera’s installation is designed to be an interactive experience; people can engage with the installation and impact the behavior of the lights from their mobile phone. Technically the boats house individually programmable RGB LEDs controlled by a system including an Arduino, a Rasperry Pi as DHCP and Web server, a wireless access point, bespoke DMX circuitry and and software that lets visitors change the patterns and colors of the lights by connecting to the specialized local wireless network.
The etymon of the word ‘voyage’ comes from Latin ’viāticum’, which means ’provision for traveling’, and the aim of the artwork is to allow viewers to travel and sail with absolute freedom to all the places they care to imagine.
Colorful paper boats’ on the water invites everyone to make a transition from reality to imagination, reliving childhood memories and embracing our freedom; blurring the lines between the real and hyper-real, ‘Voyage’ invites the thoughts of the visitors to cross the borders of their imagination.
There are different points of view to appreciate Voyage installation: one is on a more intimate scale where people near the water can see the small paper-boat items and connect to their poetic character while another allows the majestic view of the whole glowing area of more than 50 by 15 meters from the distance. The spectacular scenography of the entire fleet can also be seen from the windows of many nearby buildings and the DLR’s bridge from where it’s possible to appreciate the dynamic scenery.
Creating an unexpected and unusual addition to Canary Wharf’s urban landscape, Voyage inspires the viewers to think creatively about the spaces around them and encourages busy Londoners to stop and interact with it and each other.
Aether & Hemera’s interdisciplinary collaboration focuses on exploring the sensory engagement of an immaterial force like light, combining digital technologies and physical spaces for creating immersive and emotional head spaces.
Their practice finds inspiration at the intersection between art and computer science and in the past few years they have developed a particular interest in participatory forms, interactive environments and aesthetic data visualization; building on this interests and background, they are currently investigating the creation of new forms of interactivity and expression, enabling meaningful aesthetic experiences for the audience.
