kaito sakuma's liquid mirror creates rippling reflections around malaysia's historic penang

‘preserving memory’ pops up around penang

Distorting reflections in hypnotic ripples, Preserving Memory is an interactive art intervention by Kaito Sakuma, unveiled at the George Town Festival this summer. The human-sized mirror sits in Penang, a UNESCO World Heritage site in Malaysia, moving like a liquid that mysteriously appeared in the middle of the city. With an integrated sound element, the sculpture also echoes a drumming heartbeat sampled from the Japanese acoustic sculptor’s daughter through its form.

all images courtesy of Kaito Sakuma

Kaito Sakuma’s liquid mirrors invite new urban perceptions

Kaito Sakuma’s liquid mirror series has been exhibited worldwide, including at Ars Electronica, with various iterations. In July 2024, it appeared at the George Town Festival, a long-standing annual celebration of arts, culture, and heritage in Malaysia. Here, Preserving Memory sought to captivate members of the community while engaging with the historic urban backdrop, appearing unexpectedly in various locations across the city. With his work, the artist aims to document how people’s behavior changes when an unseen but ‘living’ artistic presence is introduced into the spaces that they inhabit and frequently pass through.

Preserving Memory distorts reflections in hypnotic ripples

Kaito Sakuma unveils the sculptures at the George Town Festival

the work pops up around various locations in Penang, Malaysia

a human-sized liquid mirror

an acoustic element echoes a heartbeat sampled from Kaito Sakuma’s daughter

the installation at Chowrasta Market

Preserving Memory sought to captivate the community while engaging with the historic urban backdrop

the artist documents how people’s behavior changes when an unseen but ‘living’ artistic presence is introduced

project info:

name: Preserving Memory
artist: Kaito Sakuma | @kaito_buruburu

location: Penang, Malaysia

program: George Town Festival

dates: July 10th — 18th, 2024

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: ravail khan | designboom