The installation plays with the concept of an ephemeral curtain, a non-tangible object that looks and behaves likes a curtain. While it has a very minimal appearance, choosing to ignore the complex technology generating the sculpture, it focuses instead on the delicate play between this ephemeral fabric, the spectator and the space.
The light object is instantly recognisable as a hanging piece of fabric. Although generated using laser light and controlled by software, it looks and behaves very naturally which gives the sculpture a sense of familiarity. This interplay between the digital, the analogue and the natural is a cornerstone in the practice of Club Efemeer.
The installation, which will be presented in a blackbox at Mois Multi, acts as a performative object. It evolves throughout time and engages with the surrounding space and the audience. The spectator’s position and movement in the space drives subtle changes in het behaviour of the sculpture. This interaction, which should not be obvious to the spectator, helps to reinforce the relation between the artificiality of the sculpture and its natural behaviour.
From a scientific and technical point of view, this installation revolves around a simple but difficult to circumvent property of light. Working with a light source always results in triangular or conic shapes, which have a profound impact on the visual aesthetic. A curtain has in essence a rectangular shape, which is a difficult shape to achieve using light. Club Efemeer’s ongoing research has resulted in different techniques to create shapes and volumes. In this case this was achieved by using parabolic mirrors, the size of the installation. With the scientific support from the Brussels Photonics Lab (B-PHOT, Vrije Universiteit Brussel), Club Efemeer created these optically precise mirrors to produce the delicate effect. The parabolic shape of the mirror translates into a slightly curved rectangular plane, as such the chosen technique and the underlying mathematics and physics add to the spatial aesthetic of the installation.
Technical rider