Liquid Reflections, Series one

This piece belongs to a more intricate series of works centred around water and light. Inspired by her fascination with astronomy and the physics of light, it represents the culmination of five years of experimental exploration with plastics, fire, acrylic polymers, lenses, prisms, light, and, ultimately, water.

It consists of a hollow acrylic disc containing water, revolving on a motorized turntable. Two acrylic balls rotate on its surface, their motion influenced by opposing forces: the centrifugal force generated by the disc’s spin and the centripetal force due to the concavity of the disc’s surface.

As water is poured onto the disc, it initially condenses into patterns resembling interstellar gas clouds. However, it soon coalesces into precise spherical droplets, vibrant and trembling, before gradually forming a uniform layer that covers the disc’s entire surface. The water’s presence on the disc both affects the overall equilibrium and is affected by it, influencing the movement of the balls.

The motion of the balls across the disc’s surface adheres to the laws of momentum, as well as the centrifugal force and gravitational pull facilitated by the disc’s concavity. Additionally, the balls serve as dynamic magnifying lenses, illuminating different areas of the disc in a peculiar lunar landscape of reflections and shadows.

Liquid Reflections represents Lijn’s endeavour to contemplate the universe on an intimate scale.