Photoptosis

Lead Designers Christoph Klemmt, Rajat Sodhi

Entry Description

Photoptosis is a sculpture that explores light as a material that can grow the same way that plants do. It consists of a triangulated, plant-like stainless steel surface, onto which side-glowing fiber optics cables have grown like Ivy on a tree. The geometries of both the steel surface and the fiber optics cables have been generated by a computational algorithm that simulates the growth of plants or veins. Through their need to reach the sun light, or of veins in leaves to connect to every cell, this growth slowly expands to cover a large area. For Photoptosis, this algorithm was first used to grow the stainless steel tree towards the sky, and then a second time to generate the veins of light that cover the whole surface. During the day, the lighting is almost invisible on the prominent stainless steel tree. However, when dawn sets in, the glowing veins slowly start to emerge until the tree disappears into the darkness of night and only the veins stand otherworldly in the magic garden.