Jen Lewin is an interactive artist and engineer with a studio based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

who specializes in large scale installations in public spaces, usually combining elements such as light, sound and complex engineering. Her interactive light installation ''The Pool'' debuted in 2008 and has been exhibited across the globe, in cities such as

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

and

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, and in events such as

South By Southwest South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in m ...

and

Burning Man Burning Man is an event focused on community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance held annually in the western United States. The name of the event comes from its culminating ceremony: the symbolic burning of a large wooden effigy, referred ...

. Lewin has written publications about CAD-related topics. Her work has appeared on ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly the ''National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as NAT GEO) is a popular American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. Known for its photojournalism, it is one of the most widely ...

''.

Life and career

Lewin grew up in

Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...

and obtained her BA in Architecture and

Computer Aided Design Computer-aided design (CAD) is the use of computers (or ) to aid in the creation, modification, analysis, or optimization of a design. This software is used to increase the productivity of the designer, improve the quality of design, improve co ...

from the

University of Colorado Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder, CU, or Colorado) is a public research university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1876, five months before Colorado became a state, it is the flagship university of the University of Colorado syst ...

, later obtaining her M.P.S. degree in Interactive Design from

Tisch School of the Arts The New York University Tisch School of the Arts (commonly referred to as Tisch) is the performing, cinematic and media arts school of New York University. Founded on August 17, 1965, Tisch is a training ground for artists, scholars of the a ...

. Lewin married

Kimbal Musk Kimbal Reeve Musk (born 20 September 1972) is a South African restaurateur, chef, and entrepreneur. He owns The Kitchen Restaurant Group, a collection of "community" restaurants located in Colorado, Chicago, and Indianapolis. He is the co-fo ...

in 2001, brother of

Elon Musk Elon Reeve Musk ( ; born June 28, 1971) is a business magnate and investor. He is the founder, CEO and chief engineer of SpaceX; angel investor, CEO and product architect of Tesla, Inc.; owner and CEO of Twitter, Inc.; founder of The Bori ...

. They had two children together. They divorced in 2010. Lewin married William (Bill) Magnuson in 2012, and currently lives with Bill and their two children in New York City. In 2015 Lewin purchased a 4-story condo in Manhattan for 7 million dollars. Her most known work, ''The Pool'', featured on ''

Wired ''Wired'' (stylized as ''WIRED'') is a monthly American magazine, published in print and online editions, that focuses on how emerging technologies affect culture, the economy, and politics. Owned by Condé Nast, it is headquartered in San Fra ...

'', consists of over 200

LED A light-emitting diode (LED) is a semiconductor Electronics, device that Light#Light sources, emits light when Electric current, current flows through it. Electrons in the semiconductor recombine with electron holes, releasing energy i ...

-lit platforms that change color according to pressure and speed changes elicited by viewers' interactions with the system. Termed an "interactive light sculpture", where human interaction is necessary for its display, this installation has toured several countries. Specializing in works that involve technology and human interaction, she often includes musical elements into her creations. For instance, other projects or hers include

laser harp A laser harp is an electronic musical user interface and laser lighting display. It projects several laser beams played by the musician by blocking them to produce sounds, visually reminiscent of a harp. It was popularised by Jean-Michel Jarre, ...

s, where people elicit music via interrupting the laser arrangements. According to the ''

Boulder Weekly ''Boulder Weekly'' is an alternative newsweekly that publishes every Thursday in Boulder, Colorado. The paper is a member of the Association of Alternative Newsweeklies (AAN) and is owned and published by Stewart Sallo. Overview Following the L ...

'',

Google Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...

commissioned Lewin to "create an Android app for tracking feedback between her innovations and the groups of people interacting with them". Lewin, along with her ''Pool'' installation, was featured by the

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

in May 2013. Jen Lewin was co-founder of The Kitchen restaurants in Boulder, along with Hugo Matheson and then husband,

. She designed its three original locations. Lewin is also the original designer behind the Learning Garden

created for

and his foundation The Kitchen Community, now called Bi
Green
Lewin also co-founded The Studio Boulder with business partner William Goodrich.

Works

Installations

*2017

and

Descanso Gardens Descanso Gardens is a botanical garden located in La Cañada Flintridge, Los Angeles County, California. Descanso gardens features a wide area, mostly forested, with artificial streams, ponds, and lawns. Descanso Gardens has a wide collectio ...

Aqueous
*2015 Be The Match Foundation,

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

: ''Sidewalk Harp" *2015 The Magical Bridge Playground,

Palo Alto Palo Alto (; Spanish for "tall stick") is a charter city in the northwestern corner of Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. The city was estab ...

: ''Magical Harp'' *2017 University of Ohio Akron, Flux Chandelier *2017 Coral Springs Florida, Art Walk: Ascent by Jen Lewin Ascent by Jen Lewin, Interactive Art

*2010 Solaris, Vail: The Water Tree by Lawrence Argent, Light Art by Jen Lewin

Exhibitions

2020 *Takanawa Gateway Fest, Tokyo *Oklahoma Contemporary *Hong Kong Arts Centre *Redwood City: Magical Harp and Light Pools *Walnut Creek: Light Pool *MSP Signature Work (Minneapolis Saint Paul Terminal 1.) *Light Wall, Iolani School, Honolulu, Hawaii 2019 *Aushans Harp, Aurora, Colorado *Euclid, Norwalk, CT, Brookfeild Place *Norwalk Cloud, Norwalk, CT, Brookfeild Plac 2018 *Vivid Sydney *Jeju Pool, South Korea *Promenade, Denver 2017 *Georgetown Glow, Georgetown DC: Aqueous *Visual Arts Week,

Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...

: The Pool *Enchanted Forest of Light,

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

: Aqueous *BLINK

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

: The Pool *

Worlds Fair Nano Worlds Fair Nano is an American future festival whose mission is to let the general public experience the future. Worlds Fair Nano occurs in major cities around the United States. History Founded in 2016 as part of an effort to bring a 6-month ...

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

: Aqueous * Jing An Kerry Centre,

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

: The Pool *

Black Rock City Honoraria, Black Rock City: Aqueous *Light Festival

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

: The Pool * Chattanooga: The Pool *Light City,

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

: Reflect *

Hong Kong Arts Festival The Hong Kong Arts Festival (HKAF), launched in 1973, is a major international arts festival committed to enriching the cultural life of the city by presenting leading local and international artists in all genres of the performing arts as we ...

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China ( abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delt ...

2016 *Arrow Arts Challenge,

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

Cherry Creek Arts Festival The Cherry Creek Arts Festival is an annual festival held in Denver, Colorado, during the first weekend of July, usually Fourth of July weekend. The inaugural Cherry Creek Arts Festival began in 1991. History The first president and executive d ...

Midtown Crossing at Turner Park Midtown Crossing at Turner Park is a seven building, 16-acre mixed-use development in midtown Omaha, encompassing 297 condominiums, 196 apartment units, and fine and casual dining, entertainment and shopping. A majority of Midtown Crossing's resta ...

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

*WAVE: Light + Sound + Art,

Breckenridge, Colorado The Town of Breckenridge is the home rule municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Summit County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 5,078 at the 2020 United States Census. Breckenridge is the pr ...

*NYCxDESIGN at the Design Pavilion,

*B-Light Festival,

Manama Manama ( ar, المنامة ', Bahrani Arabic, Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 200,000 people as of 2020. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is h ...

*Mother of the Nation Festival,

Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi (, ; ar, أَبُو ظَبْيٍ ' ) is the capital and second-most populous city (after Dubai) of the United Arab Emirates. It is also the capital of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi and the centre of the Abu Dhabi Metropolitan Area. ...

*Light City,

i Light Marina Bay i Light Singapore () is a sustainable light art festival held in the Marina Bay, Singapore, Marina Bay, Singapore. The festival is organised and presented by the Urban Redevelopment Authority, Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA). i Light Ma ...

*SPECTRA,

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

*Winter Lights at

Canary Wharf Canary Wharf is an area of London, England, located near the Isle of Dogs in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. Canary Wharf is defined by the Greater London Authority as being part of London's central business district, alongside Central Lo ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

2015 *Luna Fete,

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

*Istanbul Light Festival,

Istanbul Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...

*igNIGHT,

Fort McMurray Fort McMurray ( ) is an urban service area in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo in Alberta, Canada. It is located in northeast Alberta, in the middle of the Athabasca oil sands, surrounded by boreal forest. It has played a significant ...

at Stanley *

Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan Astana, previously known as Akmolinsk, Tselinograd, Akmola, and most recently Nur-Sultan, is the capital city of Kazakhstan. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim (river), Ishim River in the north-central part of Kazakhstan, within the Akmo ...

Bonnaroo Music Festival The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is an American annual four-day music festival developed and founded by Superfly Presents and AC Entertainment. Since its first year in 2002, it has been held at what is now Great Stage Park on a farm in ...

*Summer in Paradise,

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...

*Montreal en Lumiere,

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

, Quebec *Canal Convergence,

Scottsdale, Arizona , settlement_type = City , named_for = Winfield Scott , image_skyline = , image_seal = Seal of Scottsdale (Arizona).svg , image_blank_emblem = City of Scottsdale Script Logo.svg , nick ...

2014 *

University of Warwick The University of Warwick ( ; abbreviated as ''Warw.'' in post-nominal letters) is a public research university on the outskirts of Coventry between the West Midlands (county), West Midlands and Warwickshire, England. The university was founded i ...

Arts Centre *Signal Festival, Prague *Art de Colombo,

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

, Honorarium Artist *AHA! Light Up Cleveland *

Vivid Sydney Vivid Sydney is an annual festival of light, music and ideas, held in Sydney, Australia. It includes outdoor immersive light installations and projections, performances by local and international musicians, and an ideas exchange forum featurin ...

*Luminosity, Lexington 2013 *Chalk The Block, El Paso *Conway Artsfest *Denver Art Biennale *Escape From Wonderland *

Electric Daisy Carnival Electric Daisy Carnival, commonly known as EDC, is an electronic dance music festival organized by promoter and distributor Insomniac. The annual flagship event, EDC Las Vegas, is held in May at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, and is currently t ...

, Orlando, NYC, Chicago & Vegas *

Art Museum,

Boulder, Colorado Boulder is a home rule city that is the county seat and most populous municipality of Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 108,250 at the 2020 United States census, making it the 12th most populous city in Color ...

: ''Its Electric'' *

South by Southwest South by Southwest, abbreviated as SXSW and colloquially referred to as South By, is an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals and Convention (meeting), conferences organized jointly that take place in m ...

Republic Park 2012 *La Napoule Art Foundation, Denver *Burning Man, Honorarium Project

Awards

*2020 Black Rock City Honoraria: Cosmos *2017 CODAaward: Merit Award Public Spaces: Sidewalk Harp *2017 Burning Man Arts Black Rock City Honoraria Grant: Aqueous *2017 Pre-qualified Public Artist: San Francisco Arts Commission *2017 Pre-qualified Public Artist: Houston Arts Alliance *2016 CODAvideo Award: Experience: Sidewalk Harp *2016 CODAawards Top 100: Sidewalk Harp *2016 Pre-qualified Artist, San Antonio Arts Commission *2016 CODAvideo Award: Experience: Sidewalk Harp *2016 Prequalified Public Artist: Outdoor Public Art, City of Palo Alto *2015 Architizer A+, Popular Choice "Edison Cloud" *2014 Black Rock Arts Foundation Honorarium, ''Super Pool'' *2014 Rotational Molding Product Design Competition: 1st Place Professional Division "Learning Gardens" *2013

University of Central Arkansas The University of Central Arkansas (Central Arkansas or UCA) is a public university in Conway, Arkansas. Founded in 1907 as the Arkansas State Normal School, the university is one of the oldest in the U.S. state of Arkansas. As the state's only n ...

- Artist in Residence *2012 Black Rock Arts Foundation Honorarium, ''The Arc Harps'' *2008

artists grant: ''The Pool'' *2005

Honorarium: "Light Harp" *1996 Presidents Fund for Teaching Technology Research Grant *1996 Colorado Advanced Software Institute Research Grant

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Lewin, Jen Contemporary sculptors Interactive art American installation artists Public art Artists from Colorado Tisch School of the Arts alumni University of Colorado Boulder alumni 1974 births Living people 21st-century American women artists Women installation artists