Duel

The gloom ripples while something whispers,

Silence has set and coils like a ring,

Someone’s pale face glimmers

From a mire of venomous color,

And the sun, black as the night,

Takes its leave, absorbing the light.

M. Voloshin

The kinetic light installation "Duel" takes inspiration from the idea that ​​conflict can act as a driving force. The concept of duality finds expression in the installation’s achromatic color scheme, as well as in its construction and form. The installation’s main elements are 16 discs, all nearly flat and each with two opposite sides: one dark and one light. The opposites are in a constant state of “dueling” with each other, and all their attempts to reach one another instead result in continuous three-dimensional rotation. One recognizes in this movement the characteristic twists and turns of a coin that has been tossed into the air. The die has been cast, but the contest has not been decided yet. The discs’ movement through the air creates choreographed scenes with lights and shadows moving across space--the byproduct of a confrontation between two opposite and yet interconnected principles.

The installation was first presented on July 27-28, 2019 at the Present Perfect Festival in St. Petersburg in a separate space in the former factory. 16 motorized light elements were fixed to a 30-meter-long structure assembled in the form of a parabola and then driven in a smooth synchronous movement by custom created software.

Credits

Concept, production and video: VOLNAEngineering: Alexey BelyakovMechanics: Viktor SmolenskyCamera/Photo: Polina Korotaeva, VOLNA, Konstantin KondruhovSpecial thanks: William Cohen, Michael Gira, Igor Matveev, Alexander Nebozhin, Jason Strudler, Ivan Ustichenko, Artem ZotikovMusic: Swans - LunacyProject commissioned by Roots United for Present Perfect Festival 2019© VOLNA (2019) © Swans ℗ 2012 Young God Records

EXPANDED TECHNICAL DETAILS

Real-Time Interactive Game Logic

Duel is a high-speed reaction time game for two players, demonstrating the precision of Arduino timing and debouncing.

• Microsecond Response Kernel: The Arduino monitors two physical "Trigger" buttons. The firmware uses interrupt-driven logic to identify who pressed their button first with an accuracy of 1 microsecond.
• VVVV Visualization Bridge: Transmits the game's state (Player 1 Wins, Player 2 Wins, or False Start) to the VVVV software on a PC. VVVV then renders a beautiful, high-speed visual representation of the duel on a large screen.

Performance

• Randomized "Fair-Start" Timer: To prevent cheating, the "Go" signal is randomized between 2 and 7 seconds, with the Arduino logging any "Premature Triggers" to ensure a fair competition.