Geode

Taking the shape of a glowing, mineral crystal, Geode is a 12-foot-tall video-mapped sculpture that fuses soundscape, public art, and visual projection into one immersive experience. Each surface of the crystal flows and ebbs with improvisational geometry that responds to real-time audio synthesis. The sound is generated and visualized through networked video projections. These projections are made by transforming analog signals into digital data in real-time, thus creating the sculpture’s metamorphosis between various sound-driven, geometric patterns. The sound data directly affects the intensity of the experience through a Bluetooth interface. The piece overall gives an ambiance of otherworldly beauty and invites viewers from a distance to approach the glowing formation in an open landscape. It has been a very popular scene in public audiovisual performances in the past. The project departs from a neo-concrete inspiration, exploring the aesthetic potential of emotive geometry, and utilizing non-orthogonal shapes based on points and infinite planes. Geode takes neo-concrete art to a new dimension by integrating digital geometry in response to generative audio.

A project by Carlson Garcia (Esteban Garcia Bravo, Max Carlson, and Aaron Zernack)
Programming: Jorge Garcia Galicia, Izza Tariq
Welder: Luke Gumaelius
Date: 2016-2018
Media: Video projectors, Media player, Speakers, Aluminum, and Cardboard
Locations: Tippecanoe County (IN), Baltimore (MD), Santa Fe (NM), Grand Rapids (MI), Petoskey (MI).
Dimensions: (w)11’ x (d)11’ x (h)13’