Modulation
Contextual permanent light installation. Paris, FR. Pablo Valbuena, 2022.
Custom led fixtures, solar panels, architecture, control computer system.
 
Moduler est mouler de manière continue et perpétuellement variable. 
G. Simondon, L’individu et sa genèse physico-biologique.
 
Modulation draws on the modular structural framework of the Stream building to create an infinite light installation. The building’s wooden structure organises its volume, enabling it to be configured in a variety of ways. The artistic installation expands on this idea by representing three virtual modules on the building itself, which change dimensions, move around and overlap, appearing progressively. These transformations are generated in real-time by an algorithm that endlessly explores the combinations of the three modules, inviting the observer to imagine the possibilities of the grid.
 
This work transforms the architecture that supports it into a temporal cartography of itself and its infinite possible variants. The structural grid becomes a life-size three-dimensional display with high-efficiency LEDs as pixels. The building's solar panels collect the energy that powers the installation, transforming natural daylight into artificial digital light at night.
 
Modulation works like a subtle public clock, marking the time change with the illumination of the screen. Each day, its rhythm adapts to the sun's cycle, modifying its operating time according to sunrise and sunset.
This installation has a slow temporality that balances the effervescence of its environment and invites serene observation, revealing its potential through recurrent viewing. It is designed to be perceived from the different traffic flows and speeds that take place in this area: pedestrians using the metro and crossing the square, drivers waiting at traffic lights or vehicles travelling on the ring road, functioning as a recognisable landmark on an urban scale. 
 
Commissioner: Covivio
Architect: PCA-Stream
Production & coordination: Agence Eva Albarran & Studio Pablo Valbuena
Technical Direction: Ateliers Puzzle
Installation: B-Live
Fabrication: Sakma
Programming: Joan Sandoval
This project wouldn’t have been possible without Philippe Chiambaretta, Tatiana Titli, Diane Brunel, Anna Soula, Robinson Girandier, Clément Godry, Louise Riou, Grégoire Cartillier, Laura Bouday, Vincent Poiret, Joan Sandoval, Noëlle Audic, Clara Dumange, Tiphaine Riva, Lucie Wix, Pauline Rieuf, Cyril Laurier, Salvador Mauri & José Miguel Galisteo.