Orbital Circuit/ London Studio /2026
Orbital Circuit is a responsive, kinetic and light, stand-alone artwork that translates sound into motion and illumination, creating a living system that continuously reacts to its surrounding environment. Built to captivate both visually and sensorially, the work forms a striking bridge between the intangible realm of sound and the physical presence of light and movement. Operating as a celestial sensory sculpture, Orbital Circuit draws upon ongoing sound from the street itself through a censer pad inside on the window surface, using the window as an acoustic ear. This sonic input is captured and transformed into an ongoing, silent choreography of rainbow-coloured reflected light.
Through this translation, sound is reimagined as a sequence of luminous and kinetic rhythms. The resulting patterns act as a visual echo of place, transition, and time, unfolding as a poetic performance. In this way, Orbital Circuit exist as a performative, living moment—an aesthetic and metaphysical machine that interprets sound matter beyond language, symbolism, or direct representation.
The sculptural form is composed of six pairs of LED light arms. At the base within the ellipse's main structure, the arms sit an amber cast resin cone embedded with natural rock crystals—materials formed through highly organised microscopic structures. These crystalline formations are conceptually and materially translated through the work, acting as conduits between internal systems and external stimuli. Internally lit, the cones glow like suspended musical notes.
Mounted inside each set of 3D printed arm frames are ribbons of LED lights illuminating the dichroic circular acrylic mirrors—twelve in total—constructed from micro-layered metal oxides. These surfaces bend, split, and refract light into shifting spectrums of colour. Individually driven by silent miniature motors, the mirrors rotate gently back and forth, introducing an ever-evolving kinetic and chromatic dimension. As the discs move, light fragments scatter within the space from the LED halo surrounding them, creating a kaleidoscopic field that changes depending on the sonic activity outside on the street, detected through a censor pad mounted to the window. The sculpture appears to shimmer, breathe, and continuously reconfigure itself.
The reflective mirror elements invite the viewer into the work, subtly incorporating their presence into its visual field. This act of inclusion blurs the boundary between observer and observed, situating each participant within a dialogue between artwork, environment, and time. Ultimately, Orbital Circuit offers an immersive exploration of ephemerality, perception, and transformation—where technology, nature, and human presence converge in a continuously unfolding luminous experience.
Work produced with support from electronic engineer/software designer Erik Kearney.