Best of the Bay 2013: BEST PUBLIC ART-CHITECTS

Pub date October 15, 2013
SectionSpecial

When the Exploratorium reopened at Pier 15 earlier this year, tech wizards Obscura Digital transformed the historic waterfront building’s façade with an ultra-high definition light projection show, dazzling nighttime gazers who flocked there with an array of spectacular, nature-themed dreamscapes. Enormous blooming crystals, fast-forward budding plants, time lapse microorganism interactions were all brought to life, precisely projected in a way that contained them within the lines of the building’s architecture — yet totally screwed with viewers’ perception. It wasn’t the first time this 13-year-old design studio has treated San Francisco audiences to surreal sound-and-light shows in public spaces. Its “Corazon Under the Dome” exhibit at downtown’s Westfield Centre dazzled shoppers with convex architectural mapping, and Obscura’s “Digital Arts Panorama” at the new San Francisco Public Utilities Commission building offers visitors a dynamic virtual tour of the regional watershed.

www.obscuradigital.com