Nexus Creates SBTRKT Stroboscope

Strobe lighting is not for the faint-hearted. It is often associated with die-hard raves and triggering epileptic fits. Not art.

But Nexus director Jim Le Fevre has found another use for this medium and created a giant 3-D stroboscope – making it one of only three in the world.

Teaming up with producer and instrumentalist SBTRKT and his record label Young Turks, Fevre enlisted the help of animation artists, model-makers, carpenters, 3D printers and even strobe consultants to make it a reality. As well as a cheeky collaboration from Red Bull.

The installation is a visual representation of SBTRKT’s mascot – the dogcat animal featured in the 2014 New Dorp. New York music video – and acts as a prequel to the video, explaining the birth of the animal.

Measuring over eight foot tall and six foot wide, the installation sees the animals emerge from the water and climb over the tops of buildings before making it into New York.

Using laser-cut wood to build the tiers and strobe lighting to illuminate the installation, spinning at 33.3rpm and creating an optical illusion of animation, it's fair to say, the process was intricate and required a lot of hard work.

“My music has always been about blending live instrumentation within digital worlds,” says SBTRKT.

“We have always tried to create translations of digital ideas into physical [work],” he adds.

The installation will be unveiled on Saturday at LA’s Inner-City Arts’ event Summer on Seventh. For information and to buy tickets for the event, click here. Join the movement via #sbtrktoscope.