Burning Man 2017
Colour Sensitive was made from a network of coloured, translucent polypropylene panels that formed a ‘low resolution’ grid angled towards the sunset, anchored by two freight containers and three levels of pallet racking. The 1,089 panels articulated from 33 steel cables to form the canopy. Each panel was attached to a steel cable via two exposed p-clips that were pop-riveted to the plastic, giving the panels kinetic freedom. 2,178 cable ties were attached between the p-clips to prevent lateral movement and maintain panel spacing. Due to the method of construction, the grid of panels undulated in chorus with the wind, articulating from steel cables, causing dappled light to flicker over the space below. The flowing, ever changing flicker of light moved the image away from its static origins as a series of pixelated bits and towards a new reality, a projection of glowing, dynamic colour.
Colour Sensitive considers the phenomenon of ‘colour sensitivity’ as a metaphor for the unique conditions that determine how we see the world. Colour sensitivity refers to the variance people see in the colour spectrum, determined by the physiology of the cones in the back of their eyes. 10 Most people have three cones of red, green and blue pigments. Whilst some have only two cones, causing a degree of colour blindness, others have four cones, multiplying their sensitivity beyond what most can imagine. This idea of visual subjectivity is extended in Colour Sensitive to incorporate a broader spectrum of perceptions, both physical and psychological.