( Photos by Sean Deckert and Jeff Zischke ) “ Water Striders ” is a temporary public art installation installed in the canal at the Waterfront in Scottsdale, Arizona. They were were commissioned by Scottsdale Public Art . 8 units that abstractly resemble water strider bugs fl oat on the water in the canal.These sculptures are made of a hollow fibreglass shell, aluminum legs, hollow fiberglass feet and antennae. The units are approximately 12’ long x 6’ tall and 10’ wide. they are spaced apart evenly spanning the 700 ‘ of the canal space. During the day the sculptures look like cast sandblasted glass while at night they emit intense and saturated colors that change by a personal and preprogrammed interface. Each unit is internally lit with computer controllable RGB LED lights. The bodies, antennae and feet of each unit are independently able to change into a myriad of colors and patterns. Interactivity A custom program was designed with a touch sensor graphical interface so that people are able to engage directly with the sculptures. Using an ipad people can adjust the colors of individual parts of each sculpture as well as with the group: changing patterns, speed , and direction. Water Striders Video ( Click Here )
