Spotlight
2020
An art drop distributing a collection of 360 enamel pins featuring 8 distinct designs.
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Conceptualised by Angela Budden and developed in collaboration with Laura Lazaletta for the CREATE festival at the University of Newcastle. Spotlight was one of three projects delivered during the festival.
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CREATE, Callaghan campus, University of Newcastle.
About the project
After the success of Blind Lucky Charms the previous year, Spotlight marked another chapter in our art drop initiatives during the CREATE festival at the University of Newcastle. This project unfolded over 5 days, drawing inspiration from my childhood memories of playing outside in the dark, where the spotlight illuminating the backyard would attract a fascinating array of swarming beetles and moths—a phenomenon known as Phototaxis.
Guided by this nostalgic concept, we crafted a series of insect-themed enamel pins and designed a display stand to showcase them. The enamel pin designs were required to align with the insect theme, resulting in a collection that was vibrant, beautiful, and playful. With 45 pins produced for each design, they were blind box packaged to introduce an element of surprise and mystery to the art-drop experience.
Mimicking the concept of phototaxis, the display stands were strategically backlit with LEDs and the blind box packaged pins were arranged in a swarming cluster around the light source. The stands were then positioned near high-traffic areas on campus to attract individuals towards the light and enticed them to choose a mystery pin. By the festival's conclusion, every single pin had found its way into the hands of a new collector.
