Shylight

Paterskerk, Tramstraat 37 (inside)

Did you know that the Shylight flowers are made of real natural silk? This fabric is extremely fragile and hard to work with. Still, Studio Drift developed methods that make it possible to create such a complex pattern. This silk is also sensitive to extreme conditions such as UV-lights and dust, so it has to be very carefully maintained.

Although the inspiration of Shylight is a flower, it is often compared to a jellyfish, or umbrellas. Some say they even resemble ballerinas. The dance performed by the Shylights is very carefully choreographed. The software that makes this possible is completely designed by DRIFT. During GLOW, the choreography will be adapted to the piano composition of Annelie de Vries. On November 18 & 19, the last two evenings of GLOW, there will be a live performance by Annelie de Vries.

An important component of the Shylight is the rotary-joint. The rotary-joint conducts the electrical currents between the stationary part (the cocoon) and the rotating part (the flower). This is how Studio Drift makes the flower light up. Making the Shylight completely noiseless posed a big challenge. Studio Drift managed, despite all the moving parts. This was extra difficult because the art piece often ends up in spaces in which the acoustics make for strong resonance.

Shylight is multifaceted and blends into many different settings. Studio Drift has installed Shylights in industrial factory halls, a 17th century stairwell, a church and also modern museum halls. Shylight always works in the space, and the Shylight and different spaces always compliment each other.

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About the artist

studio DRIFT

Dutch artists Lonneke Gordijn (1980) and Ralph Nauta (1978) founded DRIFT in 2007. With a multi-disciplinary team of 64, they work on experiential sculptures, installations and performances. DRIFT manifests the phenomena and hidden properties of nature with the use of technology in order to learn from the Earth’s underlying mechanisms and to re-establish our connection to it.

With both depth and simplicity, DRIFT’s works of art illuminate parallels between man-made and natural structures through deconstructive, interactive, and innovative processes. The artists raise fundamental questions about what life is and explore a positive scenario for the future.

All individual artworks have the ability to transform spaces. The confined parameters of a museum or a gallery does not always do justice to a body of work, rather it often comes to its potential in the public sphere or through architecture. DRIFT brings people, space and nature on to the same frequency, uniting audiences with experiences that inspire a reconnection to our planet.

Projects. 2022.Projects. 2022.Projects. 2022.Projects. 2022. Projects. 2022.Projects. 2022.Projects. 2022.Projects. 2022.

Projects. 2022.