Trailing

On view May 3, 2024 – January 19, 2025
Brian E. Davies Chugach Gallery, Fourth Floor, West Wing

Inspired by otherworldly light phenomena found in nature such as bioluminescent plankton and the aurora borealis, Trailing is an immersive, interactive sculpture activated by motion. Artists Alia Shahab and Michel Gignac created Trailing from thousands of fiberoptic cables. Like many bioluminescent animals that glow blue-green when agitated, the cables glow with a rich green light when visitors move through the installation. As the swaying slows, the cables fade to dark. For Shahab and Gignac, the flickering and fading light references the wondrous ephemeral effects of light found in our oceans and skies and encourages reflection and play between human bodies and the environment.