Phase Transition
February 12, 2014
In the studio I’m working on a piece titled Phase Transition that utilizes metallized polyester film — also known as reflective Mylar — to play with light’s properties in new ways. This latest experiment builds on my previous work using rigid mirrors with the added benefit of flexible surfaces. The loops here act as concave mirrors that reflect colored light to create a luminous “eye” within each and every loop.
The composition is patterned on a line graph whose script-like rhythm draws the eye from left to right as if across a page. Unlike my earlier pieces that embody a formal dynamism found in Constructivism, this new work takes shape as biomorphic abstraction. Diagrammatic in origin, it nevertheless comes closer to painting than to sculpture.
There is a kinetic aspect to the piece however. Seemingly inert from a distance, the loops sway gently in response to air currents generated by approaching viewers. Interactive in nature, the piece is intended to communicate the phase transition between ice and water, the fluidity of light and reflection, and the phenomena of human perception.