About the 'Lightbox09' Blog

The 'Lightbox09' blog by Karen Curley, features documentation on the collaborative 'Lightbox' installation which was premiered during the 'Lightwave 09' Festival at the Science Gallery in Dublin, Ireland, Jan-Feb 2009. Further iterative developments of the project are also covered here.

Modular Structures

Researching possible geodesic dome construction methods for future iterations of the 'Lightbox' project. A more modular approach would enable ease of transportation, also it could facilitate variable scale domes/hemispheric Camera Obscura devices, with custom lenses being fitted to component parts.

Nordes 09

Antony will be presenting a paper about our 'Lightbox' project at the upcoming Nordes 'Engaging Artifacts' Conference in Oslo.
We will also be exhibiting a revised version of 'Lightbox' in this nice industrial space at the Arkitektur og Designhøgskolen.

Nordic Design Research

Forever Disco

For our Zeme presentation on 'Lightbox' at the Institute of Communication Design, we created a new temporary installation. Entitled 'Forever Disco' (long story!) and set in a glass elevator, we used recycled materials to create a moving camera obscura with inverted imagery from surrounding hillsides animating as the lift moved between floors. Further Guerrilla Obscuras are planned...

Lightwave - Beacon, Lightbox, EoD04

Video excerpts from the Science Gallery channel, featuring a piece on Lightbox and also other artist exhibits by Chris O'Shea/Dominic Harris and Frederik de Wilde.

Lightbox Soundscape

Further footage of the Lightbox installation can be viewed here with an edited soundtrack featuring the sonic accompaniment (as transmitted within Lightbox in real-time) which was produced for us by
Servando Barreiro.

Lovebox

We noticed that Lightbox seemed to have a strange effect on visitors...so Antony began to keep count of all the displays of love and affection that became apparent inside!

Lightbox Footage

Some interior footage of the Lightbox installation, though sound is unedited/raw and there are low light conditions, these clips give a sense of the experience in spatial terms.



They also demonstrate some of the Camera Obscura effects (imagery & passers-by being inverted in real-time) as viewed through a multitude of refracting lenses.



However the immersive atmosphere inside Lightbox is impossible to fully represent or reproduce on film...!

Lightbox on Radio New Zealand

We were invited to speak on Radio NZ 'Nights' show with Bryan Crump (which took place by muffled cellphones on the roof of a bar at the Lightwave launch after party..!)

A podcast archive of the interview can be heard here.

Lightwave 09 Launch

At the public opening night of Lightwave 09 festival at the Science Gallery, there were often queues to access Lightbox.
It is estimated that almost 17,000 people visited Lightbox as part of the Lightwave 09 public program of events.


Some further Lightwave festival details and exhibition coverage on the Science Gallery youtube channel.

The Build - Day 6

Mounting an embedded flat screen monitor to display real-time auroral data from Antarctica and some final projection display calibration.

Lightbox Press Photo

This representative image, shot inside Lightbox prior to the official Lightwave launch, became a key press photograph.

The Build - Day 5

Mounting a series of fresnel lenses (some pliable), then final light-proofing, before attaching our interior vinyl back projection skin and conducting some depth of field lighting tests.

The Build - Day 4

Installing glass lenses, touching up paint and confirming exhibition signage...

The Build - Day 3

Setting up the 'behind-the-scenes' tech system, 5 laptops with footage loops going out to 5 projectors (some calibration tweaking as these are mounted above the Lightbox).

Also some interior screen materials testing to check optical effects in conjunction with video/light sources.