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Explore the largest Chamber of Wonder 
at Swarovski Kristallwelten


What makes your heart beat?


It all starts with a flawless cube made out of crystal, measuring exactly one cubic metre: it might not get noticed due to its transparency and minimum number of facets to reflect light. Now imagine that, due to an inexplicable 'big bang' starting at its centre, the cube explodes into 7,000 unique shards expelled in all directions. This unique experience awaits you in 'Pulse Voronoi', the largest Chamber of Wonder at Swarovski Kristallwelten (Swarovski Crystal Worlds), created by Rafael Lozano-Hemmer.


For me, the majesty of crystal is in its invisibility and how an artist can cut it to create these beautiful light renditions.



A Mathe-Magical Experience


The art installation 'Pulse Voronoi' proposes a walk through the resulting cloud of crystals, shortly after the blast. The shards of crystal are all around the same size, but they have a plethora of facets created by a Voronoi diagram, a mathematical pattern which describes many natural formations of facets, from geology to astronomy. If time were to rewind in this imaginary world, all the shards of crystal could be returned to build the perfect cube again, like a metaphor of the uniqueness of each galaxy in the universe that can trace back its existence to the cosmological big bang.


Symphony of Heartbeats


The crystals are suspended in the room, like frozen in time, but they each have a warm light that glimmers rhythmically. In this Chamber of Wonder, each crystal is illuminated with the recorded heartbeat of a different participant from the past. Five pulse sensors placed around the room detect visitors' heartbeats using photoplethysmography, a computer vision system that can detect heart rates by looking for small variations of the coloration of skin as blood flows through the hand. When a new heartbeat is detected, the crystals nearby start pulsing at the same rate, and you can hear the heartbeat's sound. As soon as the hand is removed from the sensor the new heartbeat recording is stored, replacing the oldest heartbeat in the group of 7,000. In this way, the project is a memento mori, a reminder that our heart will only be in the room for a limited time. 


The Interactive Works of Rafael Lozano-Hemmer


This project is part of a series of biometric artworks that Lozano-Hemmer has been making for the past 30 years, where participants' data determines the behaviour of the artwork. If no one interacts with the work then, by definition, the project does not exist. To participate, place your hand around five centimeters under one of the five pulse sensors, until you hear and see your heartbeat in the crystals around you. When you release your hand your pulse will erase the oldest one in the room and be slightly brighter than the older ones. The sound you will hear is the rumble of all 7,000 heart beats together. 



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Chambers of Wonder

The realm of the Giant hosts a rich collection of precious items housed in different Chambers of Wonder. Here, in a world of fantasy inspired and designed by some of the world’s greatest artists, visitors can believe in miracles for just a moment.


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