Jeju Island, South Korea
The Jeju Pool is a light-based permanent installation on Jeju Island, South Korea. An inherently interactive series of networked platforms form a community within the sculpture itself. Integrated seamlessly into the landscape, the work reflects the environment in shifting colors during the day, and at night comes alive as visitors’ movement and actions direct the art piece through full LED color interactivity.
Dairy Block: Denver, Colorado
Promenade is a permanent, light-based installation for The Dairy Block Art Collection in Denver, Colorado. An inherently interactive series of networked platforms form a community within the sculpture itself. Integrated seamlessly into the alley, the work reflects its environment in shifting colors during the day, and at night comes alive as visitors’ movement and actions direct the sculpture with full LED color interactivity.
University of Akron: Akron, Ohio
Flux Chandelier is a custom, interactive mesh-network sculpture permanently installed at The University of Akron.
The sculpture consists of a series of four chandeliers throughout Zook Hall as part of the Ohio Arts Council’s Ohio Percent for Art program. The chandeliers sense the height and movement of people as they pass underneath, which is reflected in the movement, patterns, and colors of the lighting throughout all four installations.
Be the Match Registry: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Sidewalk Harp is a permanent, outdoor interactive instrument in Minneapolis, Minnesota, located at the headquarters of the Be The Match Registry.
The Sidewalk Harp is played by passing your body through the 36 sensors capped with LEDs along the bottom of the 40-foot-long stainless steel form. Much like plucking the string of a harp, passing through the sensors triggers custom circuitry to produce musical notes and LED colors. As the community gathers and plays together, they create a symphony of color that washes over the urban landscape. This act of engagement with others is just as much a part of the art as the sculpture itself.
The Be The Match Registry, operated by the nonprofit National Bone Marrow Donor Program, is the world’s largest hematopoietic cell registry, listing more than 10.5 million individuals and nearly 185,000 cord blood units. Hematopoietic cells from NMDP donors or cord blood units are used to transplant patients with a variety of blood, bone marrow, or immune system disorders. As of January 2013, the National Bone Marrow Donor Program had facilitated more than 55,000 transplants worldwide.
The Laser Harp Series is an evolution of immersive installations using movement and laser light to trigger sound. Jen Lewin has been creating light harps since the mid-1990s. These harps have ranged from art installations to stage and performance works and large outdoor sculptures. The Sidewalk Harp is the second permanent installation in the series and the first to incorporate LED interactivity.
2017
CODAaward: Merit Award, Public Spaces
2016
CODAvideo Award: Experience
2016
CODAawards Top 100
The Magical Harps are a series of accessible, permanent, outdoor interactive play sculptures. Played by moving or dancing through the sculptures’ virtual “strings,” Lewin’s harps create depth and tone that complement accessible public activity and random or organized play.
Magical Bridge Playground is the nation’s most innovative-inclusive playground, designed and built for visitors of all abilities. Designed to be a socially inclusive playground for children of varying physical and cognitive abilities, the Magical Bridge addresses the unique play needs of the many kinds of children in the community, creating awareness that today’s park designs are overlooking so many: the growing autistic population, visually and hearing impaired, physically limited and even our aging community.
This inclusive playground was created as part of a wish from Ashaun, a 7-year-old Aurora resident who lives near Red-tailed Hawk Park. The Make-A-Wish Foundation contacted City of Aurora staff in the fall of 2017 explaining that this young man and his family would love to see a fully accessible playground at the park because his favorite thing to do is to be with other kids who are laughing and playing.
The Redwood City Council approved a partnership with the Magical Bridge Foundation to build an innovative and inclusive playground, which opened at Red Morton Park in late 2020. Designed to be socially inclusive for children and adults of varying physical and cognitive abilities, Magical Bridge Redwood City aims to go beyond typical playground designs, which often overlook the growing autistic population, cognitively challenged individuals, the visually and hearing impaired, the physically limited, and the aging population. The Magical Bridge Foundation collaborated with Redwood City on its second location due to its progressive parks and recreation program, financial generosity, and diverse community.
Magical Bridge Playground in Morgan Hill’s Community Park is free and open to the public from sunrise to sunset, seven days a week, with thousands of guests visiting this all-inclusive playground. Located in the playground’s Music Zone, the harp creates a meaningful musical experience. The brain processes music in a different area than speech and language; therefore, for those who have difficulty communicating verbally, music provides a way to express themselves in a non-verbal manner. When one moves through the harp, musical notes play as the invisible laser beams are broken, allowing people of all abilities to play together.
The City of Santa Clara and the Magical Bridge Foundation welcomed visitors to the ninth Magical Bridge Playground in 2024. Located in the park’s Innovation Zone, the Magical Harp consists of a 24-string laser harp. The tones are tuned to a pentatonic scale, which is soothing and creates a calm, beautiful symphony of sounds no matter which notes are played.
Playpoint: Singapore
Mini Pool is a small permanent installation of Lewin’s work The Pool in a public park in Singapore. Children and families flock to the park after dusk, when the heat subsides, to play together as a community. Two small installations create a world where play and collaborative movement generate swirling effects of light and color. Installed flush with the ground surface, this colorful and interactive work transforms the park into a destination.
This selection of handmade illuminated works represents pieces created by Jen Lewin over the years. While different from her more well-known interactive sculptures, these illuminated forms emerged as Lewin experimented with form, light, and reflection.
Many of these early works have inspired Lewin’s larger interactive sculptures such as The Aurora and The Edison Cloud.
Futo Winery: Oakville, California
The Futo Chandelier is a private lighting commission for the Futo Winery. Handmade by Lewin in her Boulder, Colorado studio, the chandelier casts a unique light pattern from the LEDs installed in each glass bulb, transforming the surrounding space.
