The new sculptural installation was commissioned to celebrate ACTEWAGL’s 10th anniversary and had to fulfil the one and only demand of their chairman John Mackay: to be dramatic.

“I want to have to employ a full time cleaner to have to wipe the nose marks off the window every morning”, says Mackay.

The winning submission, a maze of light-filled ‘Ossolites’, was a collaboration between Canberra-based artist Robert Foster (from Fink Design) and Sydney’s Frost* Design.

These ‘Ossolites’ (the name stems from a combination of the Latin word for bone ‘osso’ and the concept of ‘oscillating’) are programmed to create ‘dramatic and interactive sequences of light’, achieving the eye-catching effect ACTEWAGL was hoping for.

According to the team at Frost*Design, the creative partnership evolved after they were approached by Foster, with the suggestion they team up for the pitch.

Ever since that moment the project has been highly collaborative:

‘We worked together closely for over 18 months to develop the concept for the foyer installation, through to implementation. Foster/Frost* also art directed the lighting animations and interior design concepts.’

To ensure the installation wasn’t left dislocated from its new environment, Frost* and Foster also worked closely with Cox Humphries Moss Architects to ensure stylistic cohesion throughout the foyer and also in the café area.

Robert Foster
finkdesign.com

Frost* Design
frostdesign.com.au