"Simple Circuits" Public Arts Workshop, Summer 2008

  Commissioned by the Arlington County Cultural Affairs Office, as an arts accompaniment to the Planet Arlington World Music Festival, project designer and manager Luke Idziak developed a workshop on do-it-youself wearable electronics and bicycle lights to engage the public in creating their own LED based personal art.  With the assistance of a team of volunteers and friends from the Phoenix Bikes program, Arlington residents and festival goers of all ages were led through an assembly line process where they first sketched out their designs on foam board, then cut out shapes and using wires, molded the foam into shapes and devices of their choosing.  Next, the basics of constructing simple circuits using large diffused LED bulbs and coin cell batteries were taught, and then the artists were let loose to dive into parts bins and construct their own illuminated devices.