“100 Clapping Machines” Exhibit Reception

“100 Clapping Machines” is an indoor installation of a hundred individual clapping machines, sometimes clapping in unison, sometimes seemingly randomly. Visitors are encouraged to interact with the installation by making sounds (clapping or stomping).

Each clapper claps on a time interval, but will also adjust its phase (i.e. time delay) as it listens to match its neighbors’ claps, similar to how some species of fireflies synchronize their flashing. Each clapper has a small microcontroller, a piezo (acting as a microphone), a motor with a cam, and a spring to actuate two blocks of aluminum that hit each other to clap.

This project highlights the beauty of and the science of sync. As visitors walk around the installation and disrupt the synchronization of clappers they can see how syncing works and how we can become part of it or become disruptions in the system.

“100 Clapping Machines” was created by Che-Wei Wang and Taylor Levy, in collaboration with Helio Takai.

This exhibit is on view October 6th-20th, 2022. For more information on the exhibit, gallery hours, and the artists, please visit https://sites.google.com/pratt.edu/100clappingmachines/.