In The Scale Of Sea

2018
Interaction & Activation Design, Programming
Client – Pink Cactus via amigo & amigo

In The Scale Of Sea was created by Pink Cactus for display at Vivid Sydney 2018. Featured in the Tumbalong Lights display, the piece offers an inclusive interactive experience to people of all ages and abilities. Featuring a vibrant collection of internally lit sea life (and later jungle life, in Jungle Boogie), the piece offers, up to 18 people at once, the opportunity to trigger a rewarding individual light and sound display by contacting the giant touch-sensitive pads.

This project was an interesting challenge, with the two main hurdles being: creating a responsive audio solution capable of simultaneous 18 track output, and designing an interaction solution which was sensitive to light touch yet durable to heavy touch and capable of withstanding environmental extremes. The final system I produced for the piece included an embedded computer running custom written software, 18 touch sensors, 6 speakers driven by 3 stereo amplifiers, and a custom lighting controller solution capable of driving 18 discrete lengths of digital RGB LED strip light routed into the 18 sculptural elements featured in the centre of the piece.