Colour Sensitive was an inhabitable design installation constructed at Burning Man in 2017. The work was designed as a canopy, not only to only offer shade but also to change and shift with the light and wind. The canopy was 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 network of polypropylene panels was formed by the algorithmic distortion of an image, interpreting it as sound and giving it an acoustic echo. The image was selected to culturally relate the work to the context of Burning Man, while the final outcome was graded through its more so equal distribution of colour information. Due to the method of construction, the grid of panels undulated in chorus with the wind, cause dappled light to flicker over the space below. The flowing, ever-changing flicker of light moves the image away from its static origins as a series of pixelated bits and towards a new reality: a projection of glowing, dynamic colour.
The selected image was a heavily distorted image of a recently deceased individual that had a lasting effect, not only on one of the collaborators, but also the camp the instillation belongs to.
Colour Sensitive was the site of a series of programmed and impromptu happenings over course of Burning Man, including sunset performances, tea ceremonies and deep-house yoga sessions.