Milk Bar, Richmond, California
January 31–February 1, 2026
On January 31 and February 1, 2026, Domestic Light: The Color of Home, a light installation-performance was presented at Milk Bar in Richmond, California, as part of the MilkBar 2025–2026 season.
Across both evenings, the event combined artist talk, technical demonstration, and live activation of the multispectral LED system developed for the forthcoming installation.
The gallery space was arranged with suspended multispectral LED modules positioned at varying heights. Printed satellite images were installed across the floor, marking the geographic coordinates of participating sensor hosts within the global network. Each image corresponded to a domestic location from which multispectral light data has been recorded at ten-second intervals over more than two years.
During the presentation, the LED modules were activated through a live dataset interface. The system queried the database and retrieved stored spectral readings measured across ten visible and near-visible bands (415–715nm). Parameters were adjusted in real time, allowing navigation of the dataset by wavelength, time zone, geographic location, and seasonal interval. Light readings from different homes were presented sequentially and in combination, translating distributed observation into spatial form.
Short ambient audio recordings contributed voluntarily by participating sensor hosts were introduced into the space alongside the light playback. These recordings were limited in duration and corresponded to the domestic environments in which the sensors operate.
Throughout both evenings, the system architecture was discussed, including sensor calibration, real-time clock synchronization, database structure, and the development of the LED playback instruments. Attendees moved through the installation, observed system behavior, and engaged in discussion regarding instrumentation and data translation.
The project is led by Ian Winters. The team contributing to this phase includes Dimitris Kyriakoudis (dataset player–visualiser coding), Fernando Martín Velazco (communications coordination), John MacCallum (sensor programming), Dr. Lucy Somers (data research), Weidong Yang, PhD (data analysis and programming), alongside additional collaborators listed in the event hand program.
Installation assembly at Milk Bar was supported by Delayne Medoff, James Tookey, Jeff Lubow, Juliet Hadid, and Robb Benton.
Institutional partners supporting the development of Domestic Light include the Djerassi Resident Artists Program, Kara Solar, Leonardo/ISAST, SFArtsED Gallery at Minnesota Street Project, and the Sussex Humanities Lab at the University of Sussex. The work has been funded in part by the Creative Work Fund, the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, and the Zellerbach Family Foundation, with additional support from private donors, Microsoft Azure, AWS, Milk Bar, and project collaborators.
The team thanks those who attended both evenings and contributed to the discussion. This presentation marked the first public activation of the multispectral LED instruments and the transition toward full-scale installation production.
