Winter's Sparkle

The atrium is the heart of the Riedmatt Center Rümlang. Its open centre now features a kinetic installation made up of structures modelled after ice crystals, surrounded by coloured light and subtle sound. A special kind of ‘mobile’ that lends the atrium a poetic appeal.

The kinetic installation consists of eight vertical strands, divided into two groups. They rotate and are illuminated by profile spotlights. Their surface consists of shiny particles, so that they subtly sparkle in light and cast complex shadow patterns on the floor around them.

To enhance the plasticity of the sculpture, it is illuminated from above at steep angles from opposite directions, with one spotlight emitting warm white light and the other cold white light. The profile spotlights create hard shadows on the floor. These correspond to shapes cast onto the floor by gobo projectors. This creates a striking pattern of light and shadow across the surrounding floor area.

A total of 12 gobo projectors cast their images onto the entrance area, atrium, children's corner and competition wall of the Riedmatt Center. They are equipped with 3 to 6 gobo glasses, each bearing different motifs. Similar to a slide projector, these images are projected onto opposite surfaces in the room.

Directly behind the kinetic sculpture hangs a large, central LED screen which, among other content, shows a specially produced 3D animation of the kinetic installation, so that the real sculpture is enhanced by virtual sculptures. The 3D animation is also shown on six LCD screens distributed throughout the room.

The winter installation is accompanied by a specially produced soundscape. It is characterised by alpine sounds such as the clinking of ice crystals, the whispering of the wind and a distant alphorn, and has a running time of one hour. Correspondences arise between the soundscape and the movements of the sculpture. The audio file is played via the existing audio system.

The whole choreography takes an hour and runs on a loop. A central controller manages the sculpture's eight motors, four profile spotlights, and twelve gobo projectors. All actions are organised on a timeline, and switch-on and switch-off times are pre-programmed by day of the week and date.