Japanese artist Takahito Matsuo creates fantastic, magically interactive worlds of light that incorporate a deep and mysterious hydro-aesthetic. Combining sound and light with computer graphics that are sensitive to participants’ movements, the artist orchestrates a submersive, tangible experience of technology. As his works highlight the delicate nuances of light and contrasting shadows, they seem to softly mimic a dreamlike world tucked away in virtual reveries and deep sea sojourns.Aquatic Colors (2009)In collaboration with the architect Akihisa Hirata, this interactive installation combines space, light and color to depict the darkness within the depths of the ocean. This visual expression, initiated by Canon Neoreal for Milano Design Week 2009, combines architecture and interaction, projecting Matsuo's Aquatic Colors onto Hirata's Animated Knots structure. The architecture of the knots replicate porous reefs and the fluidity of the sea. As participants interact with the structure, their movements cause jellyfish to appear and accumulate.Phantasm (2006)The soft, fleeting and graceful, Phantasm, is another interactive work that allows participants to attract butterflies and control music. When holding this glowing sphere, a subtle pale blue sheen illuminates the environment. Butterflies appear as an ambient piano melody flows gently. Gradually, the butterflies flutter towards the participant holding the glowing sphere. If the light of the sphere is covered, the butterflies and music evanesce as gently as they had appeared.Like dozing in and out of a daydream, Matsuo's works take you away from reality as quickly as they bring you back. These works are so similar to the melodramatic moving paintings and piano compositions of Takagi Masakatsu that we can imagine the two collaborating to create the quaintest of dreamscapes.
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