This Animated LED Matrix Will Put Your Christmas Lights To Shame

From certain angles Jim Campbell’s Exploded Views installation just looks like a giant 3D matrix of LED lights suspended from the ceiling. But when viewed from the side, the random blinking lights form animations of silhouetted dancers and crowds of people moving about.

If you live near Madison Square Park in New York you may have already caught an earlier version of the piece called Scattered Lights last year, but Campbell is now bringing Exploded Views to San Francisco’s Museum of Modern Art. It’s composed of 2880 hanging LED lights that are individually controlled by custom electronics. Depending on where you’re viewing it, the sculpture will either look like a giant flickering chandelier, or a pixelated display revealing fleeting images of shadowlike figures. The exhibit runs from November 5 until September 25 of next year, and will hopefully inspire some innovations in Christmas light decorating before the year is out. [SFMOMA via My Modern Met]