Drop of Rainbow

"Drop of Rainbow" is an interactive light installation in which visitors create their own rainbow. Made in collaboration between AUN²H⁴ and oxoxo (zero by zero), it was exhibited at Lighting Objet 2013 at Tokyo Building TOKIA Galleria, Marunouchi, in December 2013.

A single tree, topped with a star, stands in the dark. A small card invites visitors: "Try lighting the tree with your mobile phone's flashlight." As they point a smartphone light at it, a soft rainbow ring blooms across the once-black surface.

The tree is coated with a retroreflective material of tiny glass beads. When a light source is held close to the line of sight, light returns straight back toward the viewer, scattering into a faint ring of spectral color — an effect resembling the optical phenomenon known as a "glory." The rainbow cannot be shown to others; it appears only for the person holding the light, born from the small glow in their own hand.

A single drop of rainbow for a Christmas night — that is the gift the title "Drop of Rainbow" describes.

Exhibitions:

• Lighting Objet 2013 (December 12–25, 2013, Tokyo Building TOKIA Galleria, Marunouchi) — in collaboration with AUN²H⁴

Credits: AUN²H⁴ + OXOXO. Supported by Apex Co., Ltd., Goto Kogei Inc., and Fujiko Inc.