John Miller
Shrumen Lumen is an interactive art installation featuring giant glowing mushrooms. The mushrooms are 12 to 18 feet tall and are made of corrugated plastic and steel. They were created by the San Francisco–based art collective FoldHaus for Burning Man 2016. The mushrooms are currently on display at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. The installation is based on an origami crease pattern and features pressure pads that trigger the mushrooms to change shape and light up when stepped on. With that, how tall are the mushrooms of Shrumen Lumen?
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Height | 12 to 18 feet tall |
| Material | Corrugated plastic, aluminium, steel |
| Number of Mushrooms | 5 |
| Illumination | 1,600 LED lights |
| Interactive | Yes |
| Location | Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum |
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What You'll Learn
The mushrooms are 12 to 18 feet tall
The mushrooms of Shrumen Lumen are 12 to 18 feet tall. These kinetic mushrooms are an art installation created by the FoldHaus Artist Collective, a San Francisco-based art collective specialising in large-scale, interactive origami art installations. The mushrooms are made of 18 sheets of corrugated plastic, hand-folded and welded together, with a solid mechanical structure of aluminium and steel defining the shape of the mushroom head. The origami design is based on the folding pattern of an origami magic ball, which can expand and contract.
The interactive aspect of the installation comes from pressure pads located at the base of the mushroom, which, when stepped on, trigger the mushrooms to change shape and colour. Each mushroom cap contains a complex mechanism that connects the plastic shell with the internal steel structure, and hundreds of LED strips are programmed with various light patterns. The installation was challenging to build and required a lot of manpower, with the help of volunteers contributing various skills such as soldering, metal cutting, and drilling.
Shrumen Lumen premiered at Burning Man in 2016 and has since been exhibited at various locations, including the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the New York Botanical Garden, and downtown Danville, California. The installation is notable for its combination of art and engineering, creating a stunning visual experience. The mushrooms, which are larger than life, stand out with their ethereal white colour during the day and come alive at night with their changing shapes and rainbow LED lights.
The Shrumen Lumen project is a sequel to the Blumen Lumen installation, also by FoldHaus. The mushrooms presented a new challenge with their more complex geometry and folding pattern, requiring more sheets of corrugated plastic and more intricate folding techniques. The installation pushes the limits of the team's skills and showcases their creativity and technical expertise. The mushrooms of Shrumen Lumen stand tall and impressive, captivating audiences with their size, interactivity, and visual spectacle.
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They were made with 18 sheets of corrugated plastic
The Shrumen Lumen is an art installation featuring 12- to 18-foot-tall mushrooms. It premiered at Burning Man in 2016 and was created by the San Francisco–based art collective FoldHaus. Each mushroom cap in the installation is made of 18 sheets of corrugated plastic, which were hand-folded and welded together to form an 83-square-meter structure. The geometry of the mushrooms is based on the folding pattern of an origami magic ball, which can transform from a cylinder to a sphere. This pattern is much harder to fold and control compared to the Blumen fold pattern used in the previous installation, where each flower was made of only two 10-by-five-foot pieces.
The process of creating the mushrooms began with routing the patterns in corrugated plastic and folding them to "memorize" the fold lines. After unfolding, the pieces were welded together. A solid mechanical structure made of aluminum and steel defines the shape of the mushroom head. Each mushroom contains a complex mechanism that connects the plastic shell to the internal steel structure, allowing the cap to change shape. This interactive feature is activated by pressure pads located at the base, which cause the mushrooms to change shape or color when visitors step on them.
The Shrumen Lumen installation required a significant amount of manpower and specialized expertise. It involved the contribution of volunteers who picked up new skills such as soldering, metal cutting, and drilling. Hundreds of individual parts needed to be handcrafted for each mushroom, and nearly every one of these parts was custom-made by the FoldHaus team. This included soldering hundreds of LED strips and programming light patterns.
The mushrooms of Shrumen Lumen stand tall at 12 to 18 feet and are crafted from 18 sheets of corrugated plastic each. This intricate process involved folding, welding, and mechanical engineering to bring the interactive art installation to life.
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The mushrooms light up and change shape
The Shrumen Lumen is an art installation featuring 12- to 18-foot-tall mushrooms that light up and change shape. The mushrooms are made of 18 sheets of corrugated plastic, hand-folded and welded together, with a solid mechanical structure of aluminium and steel defining the shape of the mushroom head. An umbrella-like mechanism, powered by an industrial actuator, allows the mushroom caps to change shape. This movement is activated by pressure pads located at the base of each mushroom. When a visitor steps on one of these pads, the mushrooms can change shape or colour.
The interactive art installation was designed by the San Francisco-based art collective FoldHaus for Burning Man 2016. The geometry of the mushrooms is based on the folding pattern of an origami magic ball, which can transform from a cylinder to a sphere. This structure is able to expand and contract, but it is challenging to control and fold at scale. Each mushroom is illuminated by over 1,600 LED lights, creating a spectacular display.
The complexity of the Shrumen Lumen design meant that it required a lot of manpower to create. A team of around 40 people, including experts and enthusiasts, contributed their skills to bring the project to life. The installation is now on display at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, as part of the exhibition 'No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man'.
The Shrumen Lumen is an impressive example of interactive art, combining sophisticated technology with a unique, transformative design. The mushrooms' ability to light up and change shape in response to human interaction adds an element of surprise and wonder to the experience of engaging with the installation.
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They were designed by FoldHaus
The Shrumen Lumen mushrooms were designed by FoldHaus, a San Francisco-based art collective specialising in large-scale, interactive origami art installations. FoldHaus enlisted the help of tech experts, including then-undergrad Bomani McClendon, who worked as a programmer on the project.
Each mushroom is made from 18 sheets of corrugated plastic, totalling 83 square metres, hand-folded and welded together. The mushrooms stand at 12 to 18 feet tall and are illuminated by over 1,600 LED lights. The folding pattern is based on the origami magic ball design by Yuri and Katrin Shumakov, which can transform from a cylinder to a sphere. This pattern is much more complex than the one used for FoldHaus's previous Blumen Lumen installation, which featured flowers rather than mushrooms.
The mushrooms are interactive and kinetic, with pressure pads at their base that cause them to change shape and colour when activated by visitors stepping on them. Each mushroom cap contains a complex mechanism that connects the plastic shell with an internal steel structure. The interaction design team also programmed light patterns for the mushrooms, with the lights cycling through a rainbow of colours at night.
The Shrumen Lumen installation premiered at Burning Man in 2016 and has since been exhibited at various locations, including the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the Cincinnati Art Museum, and the New York Botanical Garden.
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They were on display at the Renwick Gallery
The Shrumen Lumen mushrooms were on display at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. in 2018. The exhibition was called "No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man". The mushrooms were created by the San Francisco-based art collective FoldHaus, with tech help from then-undergrad Bomani McClendon, who worked as a programmer on the project. Each mushroom is made of 18 sheets of corrugated plastic, hand-folded and welded together, and stands between 12 and 18 feet tall. The mushrooms are interactive and kinetic, with the ability to change shape and light up when observers step on a weight-sensitive pressure pad. The origami-based design is based on the folding pattern of an origami magic ball, which can expand and contract. The complexity of the design made it challenging to build at scale.
The FoldHaus Artist Collective, a Bay Area group of engineers and artists, conceived and created the Shrumen Lumen mushrooms. The collective is known for combining creative art with engineering expertise to bring their ideas to life. The mushrooms feature a complex mechanism that connects the plastic shell with the internal steel structure, requiring specialised expertise and custom fabrication. Hundreds of LED strips were hand-soldered and programmed with light patterns, and the interaction design team developed pressure pads to activate the mushrooms' shape-shifting abilities. The installation required a large amount of manpower and volunteer contributions, with over 40 weekend warriors contributing their skills and time to bring the project to life.
The Shrumen Lumen mushrooms first premiered at Burning Man in 2016, and have since been exhibited at various locations, including the New York Botanical Garden in 2024, the Cincinnati Art Museum in 2019, and Pacific Place in Hong Kong in 2019. The mushrooms have also been on display in downtown Danville, California, in 2021, where they delighted visitors with their stunning display of art and engineering. The Shrumen Lumen installation is a beautiful and unique example of interactive art, combining technology and design to create a captivating experience for viewers.
The Shrumen Lumen mushrooms stand tall, inviting viewers to step into a magical world where art and technology merge. The intricate design and engineering that went into creating these kinetic sculptures showcase the talent and dedication of the FoldHaus Artist Collective and their volunteers. Through their innovative use of materials and interactive elements, the Shrumen Lumen mushrooms have captivated audiences at Burning Man and beyond, leaving a lasting impression of their beauty and ingenuity. The exhibition at the Renwick Gallery showcased the mushrooms to a wider audience, bringing the magic of Burning Man to the heart of Washington, D.C., and offering a unique cultural experience.
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Frequently asked questions
The mushrooms of Shrumen Lumen are 12 to 18 feet tall.
Shrumen Lumen premiered at Burning Man in 2016 and was exhibited at the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. in 2018. It was also on display at the New York Botanical Garden in 2024.
Each mushroom is made of 18 sheets of corrugated plastic, welded together to form an 83-square-meter structure. The mushroom caps are made of a solid mechanical structure of aluminum and steel, which allows them to change shape.
