Alkekengi

Alkekengi is a kinetic sculpture inspired by Japanese lanterns, created in collaboration with Raton Gosselin and Thom Halley as part of an electronics course. The piece takes the form of an interactive flower whose petals that are built from wire, papier-mâché, and light clay, gently open through servomotors triggered by ultrasonic proximity sensors. As visitors approach, the petals unfold to reveal a central LED panel running a gravity-based particle simulation. A smaller companion flower releases water mist in response to the main flower’s state, reinforcing the impression of a sensitive ecosystem.
I was responsible for project management, installation, and system integration: handling the communication between Arduino Mega boards, programming the servomotors, ultrasonic sensors (HC-SR04), and LED panel, and ensuring stable power delivery with dedicated power supplies for full autonomy.