Secret Society of the Palms is an interactive sculpture made in collaboration with my now fiancée, Paul Savage. My focus was on the lighting effects, motors and interactivity, and Paul’s vision included the lanterns, trunks, lamp shades, and structural bases. 

Each “Palm Tree” is composed of polycarbonate “fronds” in the shape of palms, attached to large bearings, lit with pin-spot LEDs, fabricated into landscape lighting housing. The trunks and lampshades are made from reclaimed fence-posts, designed for the electricity to be wired through the tree, motorized using a v-belt drive system, with 3D printed gearing. 

Visitors are able to spin the fronds, and watch the palms spin via motors, creating optical animations on the ground below. Our vision is to activate the piece by giving visitors “Bad Palm Readings” at various events.

This piece was my first exploration into motors, big sculptural interactive art, and iterating on the piece as we watched people interact with them. Paul was essential for this piece to come to life with his knowledge of structural building, and his artistic carpentry and geometry vision.