Celline approached me with a vision of a lamp that pulsed with the rhythmic quality of breath. This proved to be technically challenging considering the required reliability of the light over a long period of time while the installation was exhibited.

By using TouchDesigner and Phillips Hue lights, I found a reliable solution that allowed me to map the quality of movement desired, ensuring the light could be easily set up and would keep breathing for the required duration.

The breathing light brought life into the installation. An incredibly moving installation by Celline – one that I feel grateful to have been a part of.

“Breathing Room (2024) is the final installation within my Master of Fine Art. It presents the transient space of a dorm room at its bare minimum, featuring a bed frame, a desk, a swivel chair, and a table lamp. The blue should invite reverie; the bottom halves of the objects are covered in ambiguous grey, almost as if they were dipped in ink. The light from the lamp gently glows and wanes, breathing in and out. Every element intends for a slow encounter. The light is synced to a recording of my breathing whilst in meditation. With no sound, it prompts the viewer to detect the rhythm and focus on their own breathing, to be mindful of their presence. The grey that cuts off the blue attempts to form an illusion of submergence. The viewer then has to ‘wade through’. By alluding to liquid, possibly water, I contemplate the passage of time and its alleged linearity. How do we occupy time and space, and how ought we navigate it? Disillusioned but ever disconcerted and now palpably diasporic, creating this work was a way for me to regain my bearings as I yield to relentless impermanence. Before I go, let me catch my breath.” – Celline Mercado