Primer

Light, polarising filters, sugar-water solution, acrylic, aluminium, motorised components

Rainbow Barber Pole is an ongoing installation project inspired by an early 20th-century physics experiment that reveals the hidden optical properties of sugar solutions. A beam of polarised light passes through a transparent tube filled with sugar-water, splitting white light into the full visible spectrum. As the polarising filter rotates, the colours spiral and shift, forming a luminous moving rainbow

The work transforms a simple scientific setup into an immersive, contemplative experience. What begins as an experiment in light and matter becomes a meditation on perception, complexity, and the unseen forces that structure our world. Depending on its configuration, suspended horizontally or vertically the piece can bathe viewers in colour or project shifting spectrums onto surrounding surfaces.