The name NunoErin definitely rings a bell, jogs the proverbial memory for a product I reviewed long ago: the company's Touch Sensitive Wall Panels sensed the merest glance of a passing finger and reacted thermoactively-creating an infinitely changing palette of blues and greens modeled after the physical impressions of passers-by. The very same manufacturer expands on the concept with today's Interactive Lighting Bench, a "luminous and experiential" piece that represents a new concept in public seating.

Interactive Lighting Bench. Designed and Manufactured by NunoErin.

The Interactive Lighting Bench Takes Human Contact to a Whole New Level

The form and structure of the bench is interactive in its own right. No mere silhouette of solid straight-lines, the Interactive Lighting Bench surprises with its bold zig-zagging profile, skirting across the chosen public venue like a horizontal lightning bolt.

Of course, this unique shape isn't the only surprise. The interactive element of the piece refers to its very own touch-sensitive feature. Beneath the bench's translucent resin lies "an emotive seating element," as an alternating grid of cube-shaped lights responds to the user's touch.

The control center for this thermally-sensitive technology remains skillfully hidden from view, thus creating the impression that the bench is alive with its gigajoules and wily watts, with all the phosphorescent sentience that gave E.T.'s finger its wondrous glow.

And speaking of sentience, NunoErin has also taken care to use resources wisely. The Interactive Lighting Bench is "well-crafted and engineered for durability... the exterior surfaces consist of renewable resin made from 40% recycled content." Further, the piece's finish is durable and resilient, outlasting by far the many interactive advances its touch-sensitive light display is sure to elicit.

About the Manufacturer: The duo of Nuno Goncalves Ferreira and Erin Hayne constitute the mind and matter of NunoErin, a manufacturer that makes a habit of blending "material, form, and technology to create experiential projects that connect people with themselves, each other, and their environment." One of the company's favorite tactics seems to be harnessing the basic energy of human touch, as several of their products (Touch Sensitive Wall Panels and The Interactive Bench) use thermo-sensitive technology to unleash compelling light displays facilitated by the users themselves.