Remember the rather under-utilized indoor skating rink at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands? The one that ensured any awkward moves you made would be in full view of all shoppers and anyone dining at the food court? Well, its days are over, and it’ll soon be permanently replaced by an interactive installation called Digital Light Canvas.
Brought to you by Japanese art collective teamLab, the same people behind the Future World: Where Art Meets Science exhibition at ArtScience Museum, the new attraction blends digital art and technology in a multi-sensory experience. That is to say, it features teamLab’s 4D vision display technology in a 14m-tall light sculpture that suspends from the ceiling. Within the cylindrical figure itself hangs 401,000 LEDs strung within 608 tubes, and you can project pre-programmed 3D objects onto the installation with your smartphone.
Underneath the light sculpture lies a 15m-diameter floor made of more than 7.7 million individually controlled LEDs, and the special effects here are rendered in real time in response to visitors’ behavior and movements. So basically, you can create your own digital art interpretation.
Throughout the day, four show modes will be on constant playback. There’s Nature’s Rhythm, a 56-minute display of birds flying through the light sculpture and fishes splashing across the gradient blue LED floor, and there’s Strokes of Life, a four-minute mode showcasing strokes of calligraphy, birds, butterflies, and flowers to depict life.
During festive seasons, visitors can activate 3D images of light crystals with their smartphones and decorate the light sculpture with these ornaments or set off any of the more than 30 different light displays and crystal fireworks.
Finally, the installation accepts personal birthday wishes, greetings, and even wedding proposals on the LED floor — for a price (of course) of S$50. Messages will be written in golden calligraphy, followed by a burst of fireworks in the light sculpture for a touch of flair.
The entire project took about two years to conceive and complete, and it’ll all be revealed on Dec 22.
Digital Light Canvas is at Canal Level, B2, The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands (adjacent to Rasapura Masters). Sun-Thurs noon-8pm, Fri-Sat noon-9pm. $5/person, free for children aged two and below.
