Living Wall

by timmylip in Craft > Art

5965 Views, 22 Favorites, 0 Comments

Living Wall

Me presenting AiR 2.JPG
52aa9db79d29c9b059000044.jpg
Me presenting Living Wall.jpg
LED lit 2' square steel vertical wall on wheels; walking requires a long sturdy extension cord for full effect. Lighting support provided by my friend John "Parts" Taylor of LumiGeek. CAD file support provided by my friend Aaron Porterfield.

Design

52aa9d129d29c9ad54000017.jpg
Flower of Life and Seed of Life.png
I embarked on an exploration of what a living wall could be... I settled on 2' square vertical wall with a center design influenced by sacred geometry, specifically the "Flower of Life".

Cardboard Prototype

2013-10-08 10.49.12.jpg
2013-10-08 10.49.29.jpg
2013-10-08 12.19.48.jpg
2013-10-08 12.19.06.jpg
2013-10-08 12.51.16.jpg
I used the Epilog 120 Watt Laser to cut cardboard into a scaled prototype to reality check aesthetics.

Wood Prototype

2013-10-09 17.30.39.jpg
2013-10-09 17.31.40.jpg
2013-10-09 17.20.59.jpg
Feels pretty good, let's move on to metal...

Steel Frame

2013-10-15 17.09.22.jpg
2013-10-15 17.09.18.jpg
2013-10-16 11.10.18.jpg
2013-10-26 12.01.52.jpg
Cut 2" Steel Square Tube into sections to create a 24" x 24" Vertical Frame and 10" x 24" Horizontal Base. Reality checked the Golden Gate Bridge art piece on top of the wall - GGB is a bit much, as it feels like it overpowers the Living Wall's presence...

Waterjet Cutting the "Flower of Life" Into 1/16" Thick Steel Sheet

52aaa0e19d29c9e58d000088.jpg
2013-10-29 11.24.25.jpg
2013-10-29 12.25.51.jpg
2013-10-29 13.21.56.jpg
I cut the design using the Omax waterjet. The Cut file was the most challenging given the 64 individual cutouts, mostly straightforward removing pieces as the cut progressed. Files attached - enjoy :)

Sandblasting and Welding, and More Sandblasting

2013-11-08 14.29.19.jpg
2013-11-08 14.15.52.jpg
2013-11-08 14.29.13.jpg
2013-11-08 15.18.18.jpg
2013-11-08 15.18.07.jpg
This step went smoothly...

Painting the Wall

2013-11-08 17.08.25.jpg
2013-11-08 17.28.58.jpg
We have come full circle in getting the finished frame and inset design back to metallic color; I used Krylon Nickel Shimmer and painted it in the spray booth (very important considerations involved given the Pier 9 location on top of the San Francisco Bay).

Diffuser Tubing to Block Direct Viewing of LED Lighting

2013-11-22 16.28.40.jpg
2013-11-22 16.40.09.jpg
2013-11-22 16.29.39.jpg
I used High-Pressure/Vacuum Polyethylene Tubing (0.814" ID, 1" OD, 3/32" Wall Thickness, White) to make strips that fit between the frame and the interior design to block direct viewing of the RGB LED strip that I will be running inside the frame. I used a Pneumatic Shear to cut the tubing in half longways, then a Dremel with the 1" cutter attachment to notch the tube ends to fit into the frame. Video is of me using the pneumatic shear; http://youtu.be/1hWyR1Qb8sI

Lighting Up the Wall

2013-12-12 22.10.05.jpg
2013-12-12 22.13.16.jpg
2013-12-12 22.13.08.jpg
2013-12-13 14.29.19.jpg
I attached a strip of Non-Addressable RGB LED Strip to the inside of the Frame. This is powered via a power supply and controlled via Arduino UNO and LumiGeek 4xRGB shield. I am sharing additional information regarding the Arduino / LumiGeek setup under a separate Instructable; for additional information on LumiGeek go to LumiGeek.com or https://www.facebook.com/lumigeek.