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Huge Spiralling Light Sculpture Echoes The Movements Of A School Of Fish

Cinimod Studio's "Emergence" uses thousands of LEDs to mimic the darting motion of a school of fish underwater.

Cinimod Studio—a cross-discipline group that often creates architectural pieces that combine lighting and interaction design—have created a new installation situated in the International Departures Lounge at London's Heathrow Airport Terminal 2. The piece, called Emergence, was commissioned by a seafood bar situated there.

As a nod to the bar, the flow of light around the twisting sculpture is reminiscent of the darting movements of a school of fish. "It is a sculptural expression of the fascinating light patterns and shimmers that emerge across the collective bodies of fish as they move in harmony within water whilst reflecting the natural sun light," says the studio on its website.

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Looking at the sculpture in action in the video below, the light does echo the twisting unity of fish dashing about underwater. This kinetic expression is achieved through patterns generated by 350,000 individually controllable white LEDs, which are managed in real-time using a physics simulation program that mimics schools of fish swimming in the ocean.

Emergence amounts to a piece that looks both delicate but also towering—if you find yourself at the terminal, the landmark sculpture shouldn't be too hard to miss as it bends 13 meters into the air. And as a final doth of the cap towards its surroundings, the main structure is built using carbon fibers, the same composites which can be found in modern airplanes. One by air and two by sea, we suppose. See some images of the installation below:

Images courtesy of Cinimod Studio

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