The familiarity quickly blossomed into a creative partnership. They had to work quickly – Traxon manufactures its products in Hong Kong, and the team only had 4 months to develop the installation. This ruled out any customization or modification of the products. The Tillotson team familiarized themselves with Traxon’s range of products and settled on their dot system with mesh mounting for the installation. The installation was a true collaboration. Dreyfous pitched the idea of creating a tunnel with reflective flooring. To create the tunnel, Eaton had the idea to repurpose the skeleton of a greenhouse, upon which the mesh and dot system were mounted. The final touches were the extruded petals – 4,000 of them in 40 different patterns, hand cut by the Tillotson team using plotting paper from their office. Traxon worked diligently over the course of two days, starting the Friday before the show, to set up the structure and lights. On Sunday night, the team from Tillotson began the laborious process of installing the petals. The designing lighting (dl) booth was fortunate to be positioned right across the aisle, and I watched in awe as the exhibit came to life, petal by petal.
Time-lapse video of the creation of Seeds of Light. Courtesy of Tillotson Design Associates
The ambitious and stunning final result captivated spectators. Show attendees flocked to the Seeds of Light over the course of the three days. Dreyfous noted that they have been contacted about exhibiting at other shows this year, including IALD’s upcoming Enlighten Europe in Berlin. The team made certain that “all components are easily collapsed, packaged, and shipped for future destinations,” ensuring that Seeds of Light will live on. A round of applause for all participants for creating a truly special experience. Congratulations to Traxon e:cue and Tillotson Design Associates for their award-winning installation, and a special thank you to Erin Dreyfous for speaking with me about their project.
1 “IALD Immersive Lighting Installations” (2023). LightFair. www. lightfair.com/immersive-lighting-installations-finalists?utm_ source=LightFair+Master&utm_campaign=2766d30684-EMAIL_ CAMPAIGN_2023_03_01_03_38_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_ term=0_-ba4f53019f-%5BLIST_EMAIL_ID%5D
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Seeds of Light by Tillotson Design Associates and Traxon e:cue. Photo Credits: Tillotson Design Associates