01 / Experience
A permanent field of steel and light.
O.T. 987 is a permanent public installation by Stefan Reiss in Bloomington’s Trades District, commissioned by the City of Bloomington Arts Commission. Steel poles and LED lights form a six-by-five-by-seven-metre spatial composition.
The work combines a fixed sculptural arrangement with a changing light choreography. Its public setting makes the relationship between the sculpture, its orientation and the surrounding site part of the experience.
- Artwork title
- O.T. 987
- Year
- 2025
- Location
- Trades District, Bloomington, Indiana, USA
- My contribution
- Technical lead, prototyping, generative animation system, Production coordination, installation, mechanical design
- Artistic authorship
- Stefan Reiss
- Commissioner
- City of Bloomington - Arts Commission
- Context
- Commission / artist collaboration
The installation’s steel poles and illuminated lines. Photograph: Stefan Reiss.
02 / My contribution
Technical development through to installation.
I led technical development, prototyping, the generative animation system, production coordination, and installation. Mechanical design occupied much of this work, providing the basis for coordination with manufacturers and contractors.
A particular challenge was managing technical detail with partners in the United States without being able to travel there for every stage. The design information had to support decisions and fabrication across that distance.
Technical lead
Prototyping and integration of the installation system.
Animation
Generative light choreography.
Production
Coordination and on-site installation.
03 / Planning
Locating every element in space.
I prepared detailed specifications so that manufacturers and contractors could produce the work accurately without relying on repeated in-person explanations. Dimensions, arrangements and construction information became essential tools for remote coordination.
The drawing set shows the component elevations and site positions. Together, these forms of documentation connect fabrication detail to the intended public-space experience.
Dimensioned views of the installation components.
Plan showing the position and orientation of the work on site.
04 / Realisation
From site study to permanent artwork.
The site study and completed photographs show the transition from a planned arrangement to an installed work. Steel defines the spatial lines; the animation introduces a second, temporal layer.
The project film documents that changing layer, which a single still photograph can only sample.
Rendered study of O.T. 987 in its site context.
A further view of the completed public installation. Photograph: Stefan Reiss.