A couple weeks ago, I came across an interactive light installation called Shadowing. The project uses infrared tracking so that when you walk under the light, it plays the shadow of the person who previously walked under it. Creepy? Genius! The project debuted in Bristol, UK (2014) and was most recently in Tokyo. The project is designed and implemented by Chomko & Rosier, a studio focused on non-screen-based interactive projects. I hope it keeps traveling around so that I can get to play with it.
If a visitor stepped out of the light to watch for awhile, the lamp would begin to 'dream', recalling a procession of shadows from earlier visitors. -- Jonathan Chomko
Winner of Watershed's 2014 Playable City Award, Shadowing gave memory to Bristol's city lights, enabling them to record and play back the shadows of those who passed underneath. Shadowing offers an exploration of the disconnectedness that technology can create between strangers, the role of light in creating a city's character, and the unseen data layers and surveillance culture that pervades our contemporary urban spaces.