MISKA KNAPEK: BLINK HELSINKI aka BLINK AT HOME

Blink Helsinki is a collective effort to draw attention to energy consumption on city wide level, by making energy consumption very visible and present. The artwork's central visual metaphor is that of the lighthouse's blinking light, historically helping people to find their way, navigate, and drawing attention to unseen dangers. In Blink Helsinki individual households, as well as large buildings, will be invited to blink a predetermined visual pattern revealing energy consumption in Helsinki.

Energy usage is of course rarely visible, by making a collective effort to show it, we share the knowledge and the sense that sustainable energy consumption is something that has to be undertaken collectively.

The blinking

Blink Helsinki includes projections large and small, united by the lighthouse-like blinking pattern. Each blink of each colour represents a certain symbolic amount of energy having been consumed in Helsinki. The pattern, consisting of red, blue and yellow colours shown/blinking at different speeds, retells the rate of different kinds of energy consumption in Helsinki. The red colour symbolises heating energy, the blue cooling energy, and the yellow electrical energy. The faster a certain colour is blinked, the faster energy is consumed by the given energy form represented by the colour. Quite literally, Helsinki's energy consumption will be blinking by.

Individual households will be invited to use the light sources at their disposal, to become part in the collective event. Unlit rooms can become 'mini-lighthouses' visible to the outside, with the help of light from computer screens, TVs, or mobile phones. By letting computer screens show a pre-arranged blinking webpage blinking at the relevant rate, or by having TVs show a particular pre-arranged likewise blinking text-tv page, or doing something similar with mobile phones near the window, the rooms will function like mini-lighthouses, showing the energy consumption blink to the world outside. With many homes participating, Helsinki will become a landscape of visual energy use manifestation.

Large buildings, particularly tall towers, will also be invited to participate in the manifestation. Projections of the blinking pattern onto the buildings will turn the buildings into lighthouses revealing energy consumption, visible to all of Helsinki, guiding its inhabitants. *

It does seem a little contradictory to use energy to make a manifestation about energy consumption, leaving electrical devices on where they would otherwise be switched off. However, by doing this manifestation in this way we become particularly aware of how we use energy, remember it, and assume the responsibilities. Together.

Social blinking

The social action aspects of Blink Helsinki are important. The efforts should be done together, in a coordinated way, and there should be possibilities for holding events where inhabitants have the possibility to come together, for fun or seriousness, over the question of energy consumption.

I'd also suggest that different parts of the city designate areas where the campaign is more concentrated, creating areas of focus, places where people can come together over the energy effort. In these areas, the outdoor lighting could be reduced, such that peoples' blinking contributions would become the more visible. In these areas, outdoor events would be arranged, to provide a meeting space for the local community, particularly in regards to the effort.

To further focus the effort, I would suggest that Blink Helsinki would happen, in particular, within certain limited days and hours of which, to make it easier for people to focus their efforts, together. That is, if within a particular week, and particular hours of the day, such as between 1800 and 2200, people are invited to focus their efforts a little more, it will be easier to make a greater and visible effort together.

So, together participants will make a statement about their energy use. By blinking Helsinki, a light sculpture will be made, the inhabitants will be drawn together and a pulsing message about energy use will be sent, to its inhabitants and the world.

* Additionally, some buildings, such as not particularly tall ones, could have different metaphoric projections retelling and revealing energy consumption. Please see the images of the different kinds of projections, to find out more about these. The main idea is to present different metaphors for energy consumption.