teamlab brilliantly illuminates an ancient shrine in kyoto and its surrounding primeval forest

teamlab unveils two immersive art installations at the ancient shimogamo shrine in kyoto, illuminating the historic sanctuary and its surrounding primeval forest in a brilliant display of color. presented from now through august 31, 2016 as part of the light festival in tadasu no mori, ‘resonating trees’ animates the wooded landscape that leads visitors to shimogamo shrine. meanwhile, ‘resonating spheres’ turns the world heritage site into an all-encompassing and participatory art space. 

for ‘resonating spheres‘, teamlab has installed a sequence of oversized orbs surrounding the sakura gate of shimogamo shrine. when the globes are touched, the color of their light subtly changes as they emit a musical note unique to their new hue. simultaneously, the spheres communicate with one another, altering their tone to match their neighbors which, in turn, forms a colorful chain reaction that stretches through the landscape. 

the second installation illuminates the vegetation that surrounds the entrance to shimogamo shrine. ‘resonating trees‘ brilliantly lights up the landscape, slowly shining color onto each individual plant before subtly fading from view. as visitors or animals approach the trees, the light changes color and a musical tone resonates from the forest. as viewers walk through the world heritage site, they can observe fleeting shimmers of light making their way across the woodland, signifying the presence of human or animal touch. through the installation, teamlab hopes that ‘people will become more aware of the existence of other living things in the same space.’