Showcasing the whimsical and colorful hidden beauty of filament light bulbs, this chandelier illuminates a very familiar object in an entirely new way.

2024
33.5" in diameter
8mm 6500 white neon tube, convex mirror glass, 3D printed components, electronic components

Hedron is a kinetic light sculpture consisting of a neon shell with a mirrored glass sphere at its center. 12 two-dimensional neon decagons are assembled to create a three-dimensional shape, with each decagon individually powered and programmed to produce a pulsating effect. The central core houses all of the transformers, motors and other electronics that make the sculpture function, while reflecting the neon shell in unexpected ways. The neon itself is white, however a secondary orange color is momentarily visible every time the tubes are de-energized. 

2019
18" in diameter
LED filaments, custom circuit boards

8' in diameter
concept renderings

HyperSphere is a 3 foot diameter ball made of molded transparent mirror acrylic panels, forming what is essentially a spherical infinity mirror. The sphere is suspended Inside an 8 foot diameter superstructure made of laser cut steel.

Inside the sphere appear to be two objects. I call them the “light object” and the “shadow object.” The light object has physical substance — a polyhedron called a rhombic hexecontahedron made from 120 LED filaments (those found in most LED light bulbs). 20 thin cables spooled onto 20 stepper motors are attached to the light object, allowing it to travel to any location within the sphere. As the light object traverses a circular orbit, the reflective properties of the curved mirror panels give birth to a sort of twin…

Essentially a reflection of the light object, the “shadow object” exists at the same intensity, and orbits the center of the sphere opposite the light object, but it behaves much more strangely than a simple reflection. It takes on an infinite number of appearances based on the location of the light object and the position of the viewer — mutating and contorting in very surprising ways — almost taking on a 4th dimensional-like appearance.

2015
37"W x 38"H x 15"D
aluminum, acrylic, stainless steel, magnet, electronic components

Concentricity is an interactive light sculpture series. Each of the three works presents an illuminated white handle which the viewer is invited to move in any direction. Reed switches located within the sculpture’s circuitry sense the movements of a magnet contained in the handle and translate that information into LED light. For Concentricity 96, omnidirectional movement of the center handle is facilitated by twelve hinged pantagraph-type mechanisms. 96 red/white LED arrays as well as LED-lit acrylic circuit boards respond to the viewer’s movements.

photo 3: Daniel Mansel
photo 5: John Minchillo

concept renderings

concept renderings

Utilizing state of the art equipment like UV-cured resin 3D printers, CT scanners and fiber optic metal laser cutters, Josh’s work bridges the worlds of art and technology to create whimsical structures that cause the viewer to ponder micro and macro scale simultaneously. Swarf presents the viewer with a small metal chip, enlarged to a size where he or she can be fully immersed in the details that are normally too small to appreciate — something new, but also something familiar.

The sculpture is purely the result of nature and the laws of physics. Friction between the carbide cutter and the spinning steel on the metal lathe results in a unique and fanciful expression of form and raw material. Swarf is at the same time a simple enlargement, and an homage to the playful unexpected beauty of the natural world.

2017
15mm voltarc blue neon, 13mm voltarc lavender neon, 12mm voltarc purple neon, electronic components, perforated aluminum sheet

Neon art installation sequenced and synced to music, with custom-fabricated aluminum wall, temporarily installed at Six01 Studio in Burbank, CA.

photos 4, 7 and 8: Julius Tanag

2019
30' x 30'
stainless steel

Mirror polished stainless steel paillette main entry curtain. Discs are mounted to laser-cut stainless steel grids suspended on tensioned wire cables to create maximum transparency.

2017
styrene, aluminum, drum triggers, drum hardware

Projection mapped geodesic dome with 8 drum triggers for indie electronic band Purity Ring when they opened for Katy Perry during her “Witness” tour

Projection by Daito Manabe

2008
76" in diameter x 12"D
stainless steel, acrylic, aluminum, motor, electronic components

Commissioned by the Arts Council of Princeton, ACP Donor Wheel is a permanent donor recognition sculpture for the Paul Robeson Center for the Arts in Princeton, NJ. Placed in the building’s rotunda/lobby is a motorized disk, on which are placed approximately 2000 names, loosely grouped by the first letter of the donor’s last name. Adjacent to the sculpture is a control panel with a button for each letter of the alphabet (excluding Q and X). When a viewer wishes to find a particular name, he or she pushes the corresponding letter on the control panel. The disk rotates and stops at the requested letter and displays all the names corresponding to the requested letter by back-lighting them with white LEDs.

video edited by Jeremy Kirsch

2008
84" in diameter x 30"D
aluminum, steel, stainless steel, nylon

18 “legs” are each hinged in the middle, connected to a central hub with a universal joint, and fed through two bearings that can pivot in any direction. The viewer grasps the two handles on the central hub and moves them in any direction, causing the 18 legs to articulate synchronously. What results is an animated spider-like effect.

2009
african padauk, birch veneer plywood, aluminum, concrete, yarn mallets, rotary solenoids, brass, wires, magnets, boot lace, electronic components

Sympathetic Resonance is an interactive musical instrument sculpture that utilizes the keys of a marimba (a mallet-percussion instrument of African origin) to create four and a half playable octaves. The sculpture consists of 56 “units,” each containing a different note, as well as a yarn-wound mallet affixed to a rotary solenoid which allows the note to be triggered by a touch-sensitive aluminum keyboard played by the viewer. The sculpture’s modular design allows it to completely change configuration from installation to installation. Each unit can be either mounted or placed on the floor or mounted to a wall, and can be connected to the keyboard with a wire of any length.

Pictured installations: 
Grand Rapids Public Museum - Grand Rapids, MI (2010)
The Tech Museum of Innovation - San Jose, CA (2014)
Wired Magazine Holiday Store - New York, NY (2010)
Mana Contemporary - Jersey City, NJ (2012)
Princeton University - Princeton, NJ (2010)
School of Visual Arts - New York, NY (2009)

photo 1: Vince Dudzinski
photo 2: Rudy Malmquist

2008
54"W x 36"H x 32"D
aluminum, acrylic, stainless steel, magnet, electronic components

Concentricity is an interactive light sculpture series. Each of the three works presents an illuminated white handle which the viewer is invited to move in any direction. Reed switches located within the sculpture’s circuitry sense the movements of a magnet contained in the handle and translate that information into LED light. Concentricity 80’s display consists of 80 blue/white LED arrays that are visible from both the front and back of the sculpture.

concept renderings

A unique sculptural interface for anonymous touch telecommunication

Alice and Bob is a proposed interactive work consisting of two identical sculptures—one named Alice, the other Bob. Alice will be located in a public space, with an interface consisting of a 12" x 12" array of 2,401 stainless steel pins. Much like the “pin toys” many of us remember from childhood, a viewer (participant A) will be invited to push on Alice’s pins, where the topography of the participant’s hand will be recorded by a central computer.

Meanwhile, somewhere else in the world, Bob will also be sitting in a public space (its central computer connected to that of Alice via an internet connection) offering an identical array of 2,401 pins to a second viewer (participant B). In real time, a precise three-dimensional representation of Participant A’s hand will be rendered on Bob’s array by means of actuators that will mechanically move each individual pin to its proper location. Participant B will then have the option of pushing back on those same pins, and in turn, having his or her hand’s topography transferred back to Alice’s array (if participant A’s hand is still in place, participant B will encounter resistance when attempting to push back).

The subtle back-and-forth movements and pressures applied to the pins by both participants will be transmitted back and forth between the two sculptures, all in real time, thereby creating a unique means of “touch communication” that will traverse vast distances. No information will be provided to each participant about the other (no face, no sound, no name); only the shape of the other participant’s hand—and the movements that he or she chooses to make with that hand—will be discernible.

2015
milk-white acrylic, aluminum, LEDs, electronics

Functional light-up “gem” drums for indie electronic band Purity Ring

LEDs and programming by Matt Pinner
photo 1: Matt Pinner
photo 5: Emmet Kowler
photo 6: Alex Markow

2015
28"W x 16"H x 2"D
8mm 6500 voltarc white neon tube, bokote, 5000vdc neon transformer

2007
30" x 30" x 30"
steel

Spin is hand-forged from steel sheet metal. Seven cone-like forms are welded together and balanced in such a way that all of their weight is focused on a single point. Five bearings contained in the solid steel base allow the sculpture to be spun freely by the viewer.

2007
15"W x height varies x 13"D
aluminum, acrylic, stainless steel, magnets, electronic components

Concentricity is an interactive light sculpture series. Each of the three works presents an illuminated white handle which the viewer is invited to move in any direction. Reed switches located within the sculpture’s circuitry sense the movements of a magnet contained in the handle and translate that information into LED light. Concentricity 16 spans the floor and ceiling of a room and can adjust to any ceiling height.  Its display consists of 16 green/white LED arrays that are visible from both the front and back of the sculpture.

photo 2: John Minchillo

Various small pieces, studies, and prototypes

>> click project for more details

concept renderings and schematics

Proposed interactive donor recognition sculpture for the Deni & Jeff Jacobs Challenged Athletes Center in San Diego, CA

2007
24" x 19"
acrylic ink on denril plastic

>> click project for more details