Coded Coincidence

coded coincidence

2021
Radio powered and wind controlled flying lights installation
PET mat PCB’s reinforced for optimal antenna reception
10.3m x 3.8m x 6m (L x W x H)

Coded Coincidence is a luminous installation, in which audiences are mesmerised by multitudes of shimmering lights, whose movements mirror the flight pattern of elm seeds as they are directed by the forces of the wind each spring. By highlighting the coincidental, unexpected paths of these “dancing seeds,” the installation explores the necessity and beauty of coincidence and its essential role in our natural processes and evolution.

Coded Coincidence manipulates the movement of original elm seeds to perform a choreography, based on their natural flight pattern. The work is a spherical experience, presented in an isolated situation to simulate the power and will of nature. 16 steerable and movable wind-blowers direct the wind to lift of the seeds in a way that’s partly natural, partly artificial. The pattern emerged from DRIFT’s ongoing research into movement of natural phenomena. 

Around the time, DRIFT starts harvesting dandelions for Fragile Future, we saw the seeds of the elm tree twirling round through the city of Amsterdam. Their size, weight and form are engineered by nature to flow delicately on the slightest stream of air to find a place, to survive and to bring new life. DRIFT is fascinated by these biological ideas of nature, that seem random but always have a purpose. We aim to understand the behaviour of this natural phenomenon to use for human applications. 

Read more: The Shed x DRIFT