Water: An interview with Andy Sheen

From X-rays to penicillin, sometimes the best inventions happen by mistake. Andy Sheen’s Kinetic Light, which will be on show at Peckham’s Copeland Gallery as part of LDF show Water, is one such accident. When working on a sound piece last year, the London-based multidisciplinary designer was using piezoelectric sensors with a field recorder to gather audio samples. Derived from the Greek word ‘piezein’, which means to press, piezoelectric materials generate an electrical charge when they are put under mechanical stress, squeezed in other words. “I discovered that when the sensors were hit with a force they would create signals outside of the audio signal level and were actually enough to generate an electrical pulse,” explains Andy. “I realised this could be used to flicker a light with varying intensity.” And so, the Kinetic Light was born.

With a background in sound design and expertise in electronics and programming, Andy has a long history helping designers and artists behind the scenes to realise products and installations. He's currently working with Goldsmith’s Interaction Research Studio – also exhibiting at Water – and Hackney start-up Technology Will Save Us. Kinetic Light is one of the first projects he's created under his own name, an opportunity to push the boundaries of audio and technology and mixes his experience with his new creative ideas.