LUX has turned Doral into a magical, artistic paradise, bringing a little bit of extra razzle-dazzle to the area! Combining projection mapping, LED technology and sound, LUX features a series of dynamic visual artworks created by an international roster of celebrated artists and design studios, that reflect upon a theme of balance between the human-made world and nature.
“‘Balance’ between work and play, family and community, built spaces and green space, diversity of language and culture, and mind, body and spirit is the theme that guides creation of all artworks, reflecting the values of Downtown Doral,” reads the exhibit’s website.
As you may have noticed by its name (lux is a measure for light intensity and it also means “light” in Latin), light plays a key role in this new exhibit that invites passersby to interact with their surroundings, creating a sort of “festival of light” along the Paseo, the corridors of Main Street and NW 87th Street, and within Downtown Doral Park.
The exhibit features five dazzling public art installations by an international roster of artists and design studios.
Balance, an interactive experience created by Maxin10sity, features an immersive micro-environment that plays up our human ability to impact nature. The projection technology piece tracks the participant’s movements, who in turn possesses the power of the sun and rain to affect the rhythms and cycles of the natural world and experience its consequent effects.
Created by the NY-based team SOFTlab, Lightwave 1 and 2, are two interactive processional corridors accented by light and sound technology that are constantly in change and react to environmental sounds.
Meanwhile, Helix and Andante, both created by artist Jen Lewin, play with mathematical and dance principles to reflect on the influence of math upon the human-built and natural worlds.
Helix features 24 spires laid out in the shape of a Nautilus shell based on the dimensions of the golden ratio. A mathematical principle often used by artists throughout history, the golden ratio is often present in nature all the way from the petals of a lily to spiral galaxies and the human face. Combining the golden ratio with custom, motion-activated LEDs Lewin shows how “math prevails throughout the natural and built worlds, and how we as humans are drawn to the beauty of our environments, and ourselves.”
Located at the opposite end of the paseo from Helix, Lewin’s second work, Andante, also uses motion-activated LEDs to create an interactive experience that plays musical tones and swirls with light as you move beneath its sensors. The installation’s shape resembles that of a musical staff in which each tube of light becomes a bar of music while bringing together highly mathematical principles of music theory connecting motion to auditory, tactile, and visual senses.
These magical light installations are completely free to visit and are meant to provide very different experiences during daytime and nighttime, but organizers recommend visiting between 6:30 p.m. and 10:30 p.m.
So if you’re around Downtown Doral one of these days don’t forget to check out this stunning installation and experience the balance between the human and natural worlds in a whole new light!
