Recollections IV

Move, shake it or dance in front of a camera that detects your motion, and then draws colourful patterns made from your image onto a large screen.

Explanation

When you enter this exhibit, light shines on you and the wall behind you. The wall is covered with tiny retro-reflectors that work in a similar way as bicycle reflectors. These reflect the light back to a camera that is in front of you. Your body blocks some of this light. The camera is attached to a computer that can detect the shape of your body (your silhouette) by looking for your dark shape against the reflected light.

The computer then runs through a program that colours in your silhouette, makes copies of it or spreads it out as you move! The program creates the colourful patterns that you see.

Questions to Ask

What would it look like if you left a motion-trail behind you?

Further Reading

• Recollections
  http://www.et-arts.com/reco.htm (You can see Recollections 4.5 here!)

Recollections IV
It’s science... and art!

Explore More

Vibrating Pin Screen
This table full of shaking pins forms patterns as the vibration frequency is varied. These patterns flow across the surface of the table like liquid.

See more exhibits...

Beauty & science in your world
Share amazing scientific phenomena
that you’ve seen.