Opal

Overview

Opal is an immersive light bath where participants relax in a crystal pool and bask in colorful animations. This piece was created with the intention to promote stress relief and relaxation through playful interactions. In this installation, participants are bathed in rainbow light that can be bent to their will. As they move and wiggle about, participants can see themselves and how their movements distort and remix the psychedelic visuals that are being projected onto their bodies in an overhead mirror. With Opal, participants are in complete control and can define their own experience. The more they move, the more the animations, and fun, intensifies. Or, they can choose to remain still and let the hypnotic visuals and warm lights relax and calm their minds.

Process

The main goal of this installation was to provide a momentary escape from our hectic and stressful world. Through our times playing with projectors from past projects, we came to realize that there’s something really magical and calming about basking in rainbow light and so wanted to craft an experience centered around this idea. With that in mind, we sought to build a little sanctuary where people could come together to rest, play, and unwind. The element of rest is represented in our comfy pillows, foam mat, healing crystals, and noise cancelling headphones and the element of play comes from vibrant colors and the ability to affect visuals through body movement.

This installation is a mix of fine arts, animation, and tech. All the crystal sculptures were made from scratch. They were sculpted out of styrofoam, hand-painted, embellished with glitter and crystals, and coated with resin. The projected visuals are a mix of 2D/3D animation and under-the-camera animation with inks and oils. The interactions were created using an Xbox Kinect and a software called Touchdesigner.

Production for this piece started in August 2018 and was completed in May 2019.

Exhibitions

Reflection Points | May 2019 | Los Angeles , CA

Borealis Festival of Lights | 2021 | Seattle, WA

Credits

Director, Animator, and Sculptor - Brenda Chen

Technical Artist and Animator - Kaley Cho

Creative Engineer - Arvind Bright

Composer - David Deedwania

Video Editor - Kelly Chen

Fabricator - Philip Chen

Advisors - Will Michaelsen, Mike Patterson, Sheila Sofian, Crystal Jow, and Ana Carolina Estaria-Guerrero