CURRENTS 2026

A collaboration between Dan McCulley and Tom Greenbaum.

Bio:

Dan McCulley and Tom Greenbaum build interactive electronic art with a focus on whimsy and discoverability. They started collaborating at ISEA 2012, and have rekindled their partnership in retirement. Tom and Dan live in Albuquerque, NM and regularly meet to share ideas.

Statement of Work

This installation encourages community and whimsy. Participants will engage with a physical sunflower console to craft their own personal digital Sunflowers. By manipulating the various buttons and knobs, users can adjust colors, petals, seed density, size and angles to create their own unique flowers. The console will incorporate their face into the seed portion of the sunflower. These individual flowers will then join the digital field of other participant’s flowers creating a community of visitors. New flowers will slowly replace older flowers throughout the week providing participants a view across time of community members.

Description

Sunflowers position their seeds using the golden ratio. Our sunflower console allows visitors to experiment with different factors to build their own sunflowers. Through experimentation, visitors can discover the golden ratio. (https://www.mathsisfun.com/numbers/nature-golden-ratio-fibonacci.html) The sunflower field lets visitors share their creations with the community.

This artwork is visible from across the gallery and draws people into the experience. Visitors will discover the Sunflower console, and experiment and play to discover their own personal flowers. After this discovery phase, participants can revisit the sunflower field to see how other visitors used the Sunflower console. The sunflower console is a table top podium with a variety of flower shaped dials and switches. The console will project the sunflower field until a visitor approaches, and then will switch to a sunflower building interface to allow the visitor to build their own flower. Visitors will experiment to learn how the various inputs impact their personal flower. Once they have “dialed in” something amazing, they can choose to add their flower to the sunflower field or walk away and the system will reset. When visitors walk away the projection will switch back to the full field of sunflowers added by other participants.
This installation will need a table to support the Sunflower console and a screen or white wall to project against.

Users will learn about the golden ratio of sunflowers, experience joy in creating their own flowers and join the community of visitors displayed in the sunflower field.

Early Version of Sunflower Field

Example of Fibonacci spiral in Sunflower building interface

Sketch of Layout and Console Design

Project Components

Projection screen
Sunflower Console containing:
- Projector
- Computer
- Camera for capturing the face of the audience member
- Several buttons and dials which dynamically change the appearance of the projected sunflowers which include the face of the audience member.
- Written instructions for the audience/participant

Floor Plan

Equipment List

we’ll supply:

Sunflower console
Projector
PC

Equipment Required

Table to hold the 2′ x 3′ Sunflower console.
Power.
White Wall or Screen to project against