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Prism Collective / 2026

rhythms of chaos

Pendulum arms, prototypes, and drivetrain integration for Prism Collective’s large-scale double pendulum installation.

Organization
Prism Collective
Role
Mechanical Designer
Year
2026
Type
Kinetic Art / Mechanical Design / Prototyping

V1 exhibited at Nuit Lumière · Next up: Nuit Blanche 2026

Rhythms of Chaos illuminated in blue and pink during its public exhibition
V1 illuminated during its public exhibition

about the project

Rhythms of Chaos is Prism Collective’s large-scale double pendulum installation. The pendulums are driven up, released, and left to move freely. The motion can look completely different from one run to the next.

I worked mainly on the mechanical side: pendulum arms, prototyping, drivetrain integration, and motor enclosures.

We completed and exhibited V1 at Nuit Lumière. Since then, we’ve been redesigning and refining parts of the system for Nuit Blanche 2026.

Watch V1 at Nuit Lumière on Instagram

at the exhibition

Three synchronized stations turned the mechanics into a corridor of light and motion. The transparent rings kept the mechanism visible, while the illuminated arms made every chaotic path readable from across the venue.

Rhythms of Chaos displayed beside its Prism Collective exhibition placard
The completed installation beside its exhibition placard
Portrait view down the row of illuminated double pendulums at the exhibition
The three pendulum stations in sequence

designing the pendulum

I went through several versions of the arm, experimenting with weight, mass distribution, stiffness, and geometry. Small changes can make a double pendulum behave very differently, so a lot of the process was building a version, running it, and seeing what happened.

These images follow the development from CAD to a bench prototype, then to a prototype mounted in the larger structure for testing.

  1. 01 CAD

    CAD assembly of the double pendulum, showing the open upper links, pivot shafts, and lower arm
    Updated double-pendulum arm CAD

  2. 02 Bench prototype

    Pink and black pendulum prototype with shafts and fasteners assembled on a workbench scale
    Testing the physical assembly

  3. 03 Mounted prototype

    Prototype double pendulum mounted inside the larger circular structure for integration testing
    Testing the arm in the larger structure
Pendulum arms, shafts, bearings, hubs, and illuminated panels organized before assembly
Arm components organized before assembly
A physical double-pendulum arm during wiring and assembly on the workbench
Wiring and assembling a physical arm

testing the arm

Moving the weight around can completely change how the arm moves. We tested different configurations to see which gave us longer runs, more flips, and generally more interesting motion.

This is our first working arm prototype, from early testing before the full V1 installation.

First working arm prototype
Watch on YouTube

drivetrain & motor enclosures

Each pendulum needs a motor system that brings the arm up to its starting position, then gets out of the way when it’s released. The enclosure has to fit the motor, gearing, bearings, shaft, electronics, and mounting hardware into pretty limited space.

I worked on packaging the mechanical components, supporting and aligning the shaft, and keeping parts accessible for assembly and maintenance. The enclosure went through revisions as the rest of the system changed. My role was fitting and supporting the electronics within that assembly, rather than designing the PCBs.

Transparent enclosure CAD revealing the motor, drive shaft, bearings, control hardware, and mounting fasteners
Enclosure CAD with the internals visible
Open enclosure CAD showing the motor, electronics, shaft support, and internal mounting plate
Open CAD view of the drivetrain and control hardware
Physical motor enclosure with its fitted internal mounting plate and wiring
The internal mounting plate fitted in the physical enclosure
CAD model of the complete three-ring Rhythms of Chaos installation and support frame
Full installation CAD showing the three supported rings

tools & fabrication

CAD
SolidWorks / Onshape
Processes
3D printing, laser cutting, waterjet
Design
DFM/DFA, mechanism design, mechanical packaging
Hardware
Bearings, shafts, gears, fasteners

where it is now

V1 was completed and exhibited at Nuit Lumière. We’re now working on the next iteration for Nuit Blanche 2026, with changes to the pendulum arms, drivetrain, and enclosures, plus work on making the whole system more reliable.

The Prism Collective team gathered around Rhythms of Chaos at the exhibition
Prism Collective with Rhythms of Chaos