Google and Chromasonic make sense of colour at Milan Design Week

There’s no denying that colour, like form and texture, inform how we understand our surroundings. It can evoke emotion and, according to the design team at Google, it can also be expressed through sound, taste, smell and touch, as much as visual perception.

The studio is mounting its third interactive exhibition at Milan Design Week 2024, in collaboration with Los Angeles-based art and research lab Chromasonic. The 'Making Sense of Color' installation activates all the senses as visitors move through 21 ethereal spaces delimited by scrim walls with responsive light and audio displays. They eventually reach a series of rooms more tangibly demonstrating how certain tones relate to specific sensations and are harnessed in the brand’s ever-evolving suite of products—phones, tablets and smart home devices.

Google: Making Sense of Color

'Colour resonates with vibrancy, embodying energy,' says Ivy Ross, Vice President of Design, UX, and Research for Hardware Products at Google, 'Color has both biological and psychological influence on us. Right now we are going through a lot of emotion as a society, so understanding the power of these natural forces and its different properties seems as relevant as ever.'

Chromasonic has created well-received immersive light and sound installations—such as Venice, Satellite One space in California—with the aim of promoting wellbeing. Ross and her team chose to collaborate with the practice because of its ability to make colour more experiential and physically engaging. The art and research lab has implemented its proprietary Chromasonic Refrequencing technology.

'Light waves are converted to sound waves and sound waves are converted into light waves in real-time; in essence, making light audible and sound visible,' says Harriet Girardoni, practice co-founder. 'Light and sound travel as one and accentuates our awareness of our presence within it and of others as they pass through, appearing and dissolving within and between the array of the installation's spaces.'

By merging the immateriality of light with the materiality of sound, this formula expands natural perception. Visitors can experience a deeper sense of presence within the synesthetic environment. 'Colour can evoke memory, inspire desire, and captivate us in the moment with a feeling of awe,” adds Johannes Girardoni, Chromasonic co-founder. “We spatialize colour and sound to create shapeshifting experiences of physical space. It is a means of intentional placemaking.'

For many design industry visitors touring an ever-exhausting Milan Design Week and Salone del Mobile furniture fair, Google’s installations offer rest, relaxation and contemplation. 'We do believe this year’s exhibit will provide guests the kind of respite that leaves them feeling both refreshed and revitalised,' Ross concludes. 'We started using the Salone to share our thought leadership in design and what inspires us, we love to create experiences that are presented to the design professional and the general public.'

Making Sense of Colour is on view from 15 to 21 April, during Milan Design Week 2024

Garage 21
via Archimede, 26
20129 Milan

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