SEATTLE — Where solar winds strike Earth's magnetic field, particles alight and dance.
"This wonderful thing is around us all the time," said Seattle artist Ginny Ruffner.
The natural phenomenon known as an aurora is a constant presence high above the atmosphere, but only visible in dark skies during periods of heightened solar activity. It's best viewed closer to the earth's polar regions.
"Our atmosphere is both fragile and alive with things we may or may not be aware of," Ruffner said. "It's worth protecting."
Ruffner has always been fascinated by the world's natural treasures.
"I remember the very first time I saw the Grand Canyon," she said. "I was astonished and I said to myself, 'Oh, you know what's wonderful about this is it's one of the very few things that man cannot screw up.'"
The Seattle artist pays tribute to the Northern and Southern Lights with "Project Aurora," a piece now on display at the National Nordic Museum, made in collaboration with video game legend Ed Fries and VR researcher Wanda Gregory, using thousands of color-changing sources of light.
"35,000 one-millimeter LEDs," Ruffner said.
The installation has been programmed from actual aurora images and guided by artificial intelligence, ensuring that the display will never look the same twice. It's a tribute to the ever-changing shows that nature offers if only we bother to notice.
"Pay attention," Ruffner said.
"Ginny Ruffner: Project Aurora" will be on display at the National Nordic Museum through June 2.
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