(ultra) light network
by Carlos Felix Raspall Galli, Carlos Bañón, Manuel Garrido Freire, Mohan Rajesh Elara
The installation primarily consists of a mesh of 150 nodes and 500+ bars forming a very lightweight structure. It covers a floor-plan of 5m x 10m. To emphasise the lightness of the installation, the structure is elevated 2.5m over the ground, letting visitors walk below it. The structure is supported in only three points. The distribution of nodes and bars in the structure is irregular, forming a complex and efficient three-dimensional pattern of lines. The design is optimised using digital tools developed by the team to reduce the mass to the minimum and automatically calculate the geometry of each individual element in the structure. Each node is unique, getting its geometry from the number and angles of converging bars. The nodes are fabricated using 3D printing, and the material is high performance translucent nylon 3D. The printed nodes include the ID number of the node and the converging bars for easy assembly. Enclosed inside the white polygonal pillars, the sensors and controllers will be hidden. The mesh lights up “firing” sequences of light motions traveling across nodes and bars. The public interacts with the structure in the three points of support, where the presence and activity of people is sensed and used to trigger dynamic patterns of light. As the public increases its stimuli, the installation responds with faster, brighter flows of light streams.
