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Documented artwork / audiovisual LED installation

Nova

Christopher Schardt

An LED installation related to Firmament, using the same light arrangement and program in a smaller format. The Smithsonian presented Nova in its No Spectators exhibition at the Renwick Gallery from 2018 to early 2019.

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Documented work. Current availability, ownership and installation requirements must be confirmed with the artist.

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Image from the project source for Nova
Image: americanart.si.edu ↗© 2026 Smithsonian American Art Museum (as credited at source)

At a glance

Year / version
2016
Materials
laser-cut aluminum, RBG LEDs (as printed in museum label)
Documented setting
indoor
Dimensions
Not documented
Dimensions apply to
Not documented
Availability
Unconfirmed

Places & versions

Installation history

Historical presentations. A past installation does not establish the current location or suitability for a new site.

  1. March 30, 2018–January 21, 2019

    Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC

    Site
    Renwick Gallery
    Event
    No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man
    Start date
    2018-03-30
    End date
    2019-01-21
    Date meaning
    documented

    Installation details checked 2026-10-17.

    Installation source

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Research notes for project planning

How this work was made and presented

Nova in the Renwick Gallery, 2018–2019

Translate the experience to the room

The Smithsonian explains Nova through its relationship to Christopher Schardt’s larger Firmament installation. For the Renwick presentation, the light arrangement condensed an experience associated with an expansive canopy into a smaller space while retaining the underlying program. That history is useful when evaluating photographs of related works: a familiar visual language need not imply an identical physical installation. The planning lesson is to define what must survive a change of scale, such as audience orientation or musical immersion, before discussing the dimensions of a particular version.

Smithsonian American Art Museum — Christopher Schardt ↗ · Reviewed 2026-10-10

For your project brief

Which qualities of the larger canopy experience must remain legible in a smaller room?

Big Art Partners planning prompt

Technical materials recorded for the 2018 Smithsonian loan

Treat control and audio as part of the object

The Smithsonian’s No Spectators checklist records Nova as a 2016 work incorporating laser-cut aluminum, LEDs, a Raspberry Pi, custom software and speakers. Its listed dimensions belong to that exhibited object, and the checklist identifies an artist loan. The materials entry makes clear that presenting the work involves a coordinated physical, computational and audio system. For planning, a condition and installation discussion should address the controller, software behavior and sound presentation together with the aluminum structure, rather than relying on appearance or size alone.

Smithsonian — No Spectators exhibition checklist ↗ · Reviewed 2026-10-10

For your project brief

What documentation accompanies the controller, software and speakers for the specific version under discussion?

Big Art Partners planning prompt
Light art installations ↗Sound art installations ↗

Plan the next step

How to plan an outdoor sculpture loan ↗How to prepare a site brief for large-scale public art ↗

Sources