Silver Lighting Projects and Light Art Design · 2025
Through the Looking Prism Light Art Installation
by Takanao Todo
- A' Design Award 2025 Silver Winner in Lighting Projects and Light Art Design
- Awarded April 15, 2025
- CLIENT: Takanao Todo Design
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 27,954
- Verification code 473A215285 · Verify this award
About Through the Looking Prism Light Art Installation
Prism glass wall reflect and refract existing urban panorama of the Chao Phraya River, one of the representative Bangkok's scenery. The structure made with 300 pieces of glass prisms supported by sand blast finish stainless steel offers alternative perspective with its prism light. There is no additional lighting in the structure not only minimizes energy consumption while serves as a critique of light pollution in current urban setting. The installation is a testament to the boundless possibilities of light art installation has been displayed in Asia-wide with its easy assembly system.
Takanao Todo's Through the Looking Prism Light Art Installation exemplifies the contemporary convergence of architectural intervention, optical science, and phenomenological experience within the expanded field of public light art. Positioned within the lineage of artists such as Olafur Eliasson and James Turrell who investigate perception and luminosity as primary artistic materials, this installation transforms its waterfront site into a space of heightened sensory awareness and contemplative pause. The curved screen of vertical prismatic elements functions simultaneously as architectural barrier and optical instrument, its dichroic or treated surfaces capturing ambient light and dispersing it into spectral components that shift and transform with atmospheric conditions and viewer movement. The technical achievement lies in the precise calibration of material properties, element spacing, and formal curvature to maximize chromatic effects while maintaining structural elegance and environmental responsiveness. Compositionally, the installation engages in sophisticated dialogue with its surroundings, the sweeping arc both framing and filtering views of the waterway and distant illuminated landmark, creating layered visual experiences that oscillate between focused attention on the prismatic effects and expanded awareness of the broader environmental context. The twilight hour captured here reveals the work's temporal sensitivity, as natural and artificial illumination combine to produce effects unavailable at other moments, suggesting that the installation functions as a kind of luminous sundial marking the passage of time through changing chromatic displays. The thematic resonance extends beyond formal beauty toward meditation on perception itself, inviting viewers to consider how light constructs visual experience and how architectural intervention can reveal ordinarily invisible phenomena. What transient chromatic harmonies might emerge as viewers traverse the curved pathway and atmospheric conditions shift?
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- Prism glass reflect and refract unique urban panorama of Bangkok offering alternative perspective with its prism light. The absence of additional lighting not only minimizes energy consumption but also serves as a poignant critique of light pollution prevalent in modern urban settings. The installation is a testament to the boundless possibilities of light art installation.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Stainless Steel with sand blast finish, 150mm x 20mm x 20mm glass prism, Width 2000mm Depth 200mm x Height 1900mm
- Tags
- Prism, Light, Refraction, Chao Phraya River, Installation, Bangkok, Reflection, Glass Prism
- Production Technology
- This installation consists of 300 pieces of glass prisms supported by a sandblast-finished stainless steel frame. Each glass prism follows the large-size commercial glass prism, 30mm x 30mm X 150mm. They are fixed to the frame with a wedge supported with an adhesive connection. The height of the frame is 1900 mm in height and 2000mm in width, which is portable by the truck, and able to be carried and assembled by the labor. Self-weight helps to stabilize the installation, which is resistant to the wind.
- Design Challenge
- The first prototype was made with adhesive connection, which made it difficult to relocate the structure. The detail developed to become mechanical connection, made it easier to replace the glass prism when needed. And this solves the issue about maintenance for cleaning as it is easier to clean while removing glass pieces.
One of the challenge was to meet the cost of the glass prism. It was impossible to make custom made piece to fit within a reasonable range of the budget. Mass-produced glass prism for scientific experimentation was used for the construction.
Glass prism had several cracks with the direct sunlight exposure. Higher spec glass prism stood well on an exterior condition, thus the spec of the glass prevents from damage.
Both natural and artificial light phenomena changes drastically between day and night. It was a sensitive work to capture all kinds of light effect produced from the structure. - Project Duration
- The project displayed as a part of the Bangkok Design Week in Jan 2024 in Rajinee Pier in Bangkok, and relocated to the Pahurat Flower Market.
- Operation Flow
- It is a stand alone structure. At the different time of the day, both natural and artificial light get reflect and refracted through the glass prisms. The structure was placed carefully to cover typical panorama of the Chao Phraya River where represents Bangkok well. Minimizing the artificial light within the site to maximize the incoming light from the other side of the river. Height of the structure made from 2000mm to 1900mm to accommodate average audience eye height.
- Research
- This design research project examines the optical performance of the glass prism. This research commenced by investigating experimental works using prism as a material to manipulate optical phenomena, light refraction and reflection. Although glass is a building material that offers transparency in architectural design, prism glass hardly ever became a common type of glass due to its unorthodox form. The research stems from earlier investigations and designs using prism materials, aiming to exploit their unique optical effects while making construction methods more affordable and practical. Bangkok Design Week 2024, “Through the Looking Prism” with dimension of 1.9 m x 1.8 m, demonstrates various effects produced through the prismatic wall made of 300 pieces of prism glass. The location of the installation is located at the viewing platform towards Chao Phraya River, where there is constant movement of water surface and boats, with uninterrupted view allowing sunlight to hit. The structure is designed to maximize the viewing experience of the observer. There were observed sunlight refraction at different times of the day, artificial light refraction at nighttime, observed prismatic light with a spectrum of light at certain times of the day, and shifts from refraction to reflection at different angles.
- Inspiration
- Rejecting the conventional use of additional lighting sources, while showcase the transformative power of light in shaping the urban landscape, both in day and night. The heart of this installation is a window adorned with a glass prism wall, meticulously designed to capture and refract the myriad hues of Bangkok's nocturnal charm. Situated along the iconic Chao Phraya River, the structure offers a mesmerizing interplay of light and shadow, capturing the essence of the city's vibrant energy.
- Image Credits
- Swita Uancharoenkul
- Patents
- n.a.
Colors of Through the Looking Prism Light Art Installation
Grand Interview about Through the Looking Prism Light Art Installation
This design began by both exploring the potentiality of glass prism as a way to divert, reflect and refract light to manipulate the view, while challenging with the light pollution matter. These aspects hybridize well on the opportunity to place a small structure by the Bangkok's famous Chao Phraya River. In order to maximize the effect, the structural frame to be made with less disturbing design, sand-blast finish stainless steel to have less presence, while supporting glass prisms with adhesive connection minimize details with less disturbance for the view. Each angle of the glass prisms place strategically to refract the city view during day and night, while the structural support curves in quarter of circle as a way to enhance its structural performance for stand alone structure accomodate human cone of vision.
There was a certain freedom in choosing a site to install this project within Bangkok. After a careful potential site visits, the circular shaped platform attached to the existing pier has both excellent view to capture dynamic movement of the water surface caused by the river boats, and symbolic architecture representing the image of Bangkok. Thus this pier has selected as the best possible location to examine the concept.
Tea culture consider carefully about the threshold to negotiate change of the quality between inside and outside through filtering light with various light diffusers, and controlling the size and number of openings depending on the use. This inspires me to think of the alternative architectural threshold in a form of glass prisms. I would also like to design a tea house made with this material in near future!About being Japanese dyslexic, I often felt the disparity of my cognition differ from the rest. This feeling teaches me to have a sense of perspective. This project aiming also to offer a sense of perspective to learn other ways of seeing things.
Adhesive connection was not strong enough for supporting glass prisms on the stainless steel frame with a simple notch. Many glass came off and got damaged by expansion and contraction of the structure due to heat, and heavy rain weakens the glue. This lead for improving connection system to have more flexibility for protecting the glass prisms from thermal damage, and easy replacement with mechanical connection system. This installation was placed in Singapore proving that no glass prisms got damaged during the event, and able to display in an alternative location.
It was initially designed to divert views at different time of the day. When I stationed in front of the structure for the almost entire day, between 1600 PM to 1700 PM, there was a projection of the spectrum of light in rainbow color appeared through the prism glasses. It was a miraculous moment only when the direct sunlight enters at a certain angle to allow this phenomena.
The site was a perfect place to examine the performance of the installation due to its panoramic view, dynamic movement of the wave, and darkness as there were only limited amount of light installed on site. It offers tremendous view in each different time, but I personally think that from dawn to night, between 1800 PM to 1900 PM is the most dramatic time to enjoy the changes of light, while river boats get most active around that time.
Initially, it was planned to use custom made glass, but it cannot meet with the realistic budget for the design. The design was determined by the largest size of the commercial glass prism available to set the rest. Structural design aims to minimize the presence of the structure not only with its sand-blast finish, but also with the curved form, and thickness to be minimized. Thus the concept of this projects crystalized by the constrained of the size of the commercial glass prisms.
The proportion must corresponds with the size of the audience. In Thailand, average height is lower than the Western countries. It comes naturally to adjust it for offering the best experience for the majority. It was also a gentle advice from the fabricator as many workers were short, and fabricators are the one who could not experience the effect well.
I would like to develop this installation for larger scale to be used for a screen in a major architecture and panoramic view which offers the way to enjoy the darkness, questioning the idea of light pollution, and a sense of perspective. The prism has also a potentiality to be used as a threshold for space like office meeting room, and tea room where they need some privacy and visual connection to outside.
As mentioned earlier, this project demonstrate the limit of the glass prisms with adhesive connection leads to breakage by heat expansion and rain. Adhesive connection also make it hard to replace new glass prisms with stains. Thus the following to this project built in Singapore improved the connection to be made with mechanical system protects the glass prisms, and allow for easier, flexible and durable installation.