Alzheimer’s Affinity

To experience Alzheimer’s Affinity, visitors explored an intricate web of interconnected orbs representing neurons in the brain. Stimulated by touch, these creative technology orbs triggered a striking display of light and sound that brought the sculpture to life. The longer a visitor’s touch, the further their colour would travel through the installation. As more and more visitors interacted, the light installation would become brighter and more vibrant in a powerful statement about shared memory.

Underneath this colourful interactivity, Affinity would transition throughout the night from an angelic white canvas to an ominous purple. While the initial white enabled a vivid display as audiences interacted, over time the slow creep towards purple restricted their ability to engage. Eventually, regardless of the audience’s efforts, the light installation was overwhelmed by purple, erasing their interactions in a powerful testament to the irreversible damage caused by Alzheimer’s.

We also added a gentle soundscape revealing the personal stories of people impacted by dementia as another creative technology element of the light installation. As audiences sent beams of colour back and forth throughout the interactive artwork, this audio experience enhanced the spectacle of the sculpture, grounding visitors in the very real impact of Alzheimer’s while highlighting the importance of shared memories to who we are.

With a 10 year – or 25,000 hours – lifespan, Alzheimer’s Affinity was designed to be reused and repurposed for audiences around the world. Developed as a modular system, the light installation is sturdy enough to withstand wind and rain, while flexible enough to be reprogrammed as needed. Though resembling a landmark in size, the sculpture’s sixty neurons, supporting legs, and network of creative technology are reconfigurable depending on the purpose and capacity of each exhibition location.