Light Matrix (MIT), 2016

Morris and Sophie Chang Building at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA

Leo Villareal’s artwork Light Matrix (MIT), which is located at the entrance of the Morris and Sophie Chang Building, is comprised of nine-foot rods hang vertically from the ceiling, creating a luminescent canopy suspended from the ceiling of the north vestibule of the building. Enclosed by glass, the work is visible both from below, where the sparkling extensions evoke icicles, and from afar, where the patterns created by the lights’ changing levels of brightness become recognizable. 

In addition to light, the installation deploys technology as a material. After the steel rods were installed, Villareal programmed the lighting sequences on site with custom-designed software so that the lights flicker on and off with varying speeds and luminescence, from subtle shifts to rapid and pulsating flashes. The perceptual effect is hypnotic. On a conceptual level, this aspect of the work reflects a desire to model systems and understand how parts relate to a whole—tasks central to students in MIT Sloan School of Management and the Department of Economics, both of which are housed in this building.