ITP show: Solar chandelier

Christian Cerrito & Petra Farinha’s Solar chandelier – A suspended solar/kinetic sculpture that gathers energy during the day, and dispenses light at night.

A kinetic mobile made of up of several independent light seeking, energy gathering BEAM robots. Each segment/robot of the chandelier will rely upon sensor input to move into an optimal position for gathering solar energy. The movements of each suspended robot will affect the positions of those that it is attached to, resulting in an active “fight” for light between the chandelier segments throughout the day. At night, the robots dispense the energy that they have gathered as light, the most successful segments staying lit the longest.

The solar chandelier provides a dynamic visualization of the normally static process of gathering solar energy. Users will witness parts of the chandelier moving and reacting as though simple living organisms, and directly benefit from the energy that they gather.