Art Commission

Visualizing Limitless Energy with CFS

Client

Commonwealth Fusion Systems

Challenge

Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) recently unveiled a new, state-of-the-art campus in Devens, Massachusetts that houses offices, manufacturing facilities, and SPARC – the world’s first net energy (Q>1) compact fusion system. To inspire, empower, and champion the next generation of energy stewards paving the way for equal energy access, CFS wanted to create an artwork that represents its vision for fusion energy.

Opportunity

Engage key partners, stakeholders and guests visiting the campus with the core concepts of fusion energy and CFS’ technology. Transform the complex and hidden aspects of fusion energy systems (those at the molecular scale, or out of sight / below ground) into an inspirational visualization to support storytelling and education.
Audience Impact
# Key Stories
3
Spatial Impact
Installation Scale
25 x 15 ft
Company Impact
Employees
800 FTEs
For reference only, credit: Chris Fraser

A Story Told Through Light

Fusion is clean, limitless energy. We created a light- and material-based artwork to explore the concept of “limitless.” The artwork leverages design details that make the big ideas of fusion energy tangible and support the organization’s vision for global energy equity.

Making the Intangible, Tangible

Our light-based artwork reflects key fusion energy concepts through form and movement. CFS’ “tokamak” fusion technology contains 18, D-shaped high temperature superconducting copper magnets - each the size of a car. They hold plasma particles in place to achieve the specific conditions necessary for fusion. Drawing inspiration from this tokamak structure, the installation also consists of 18, D-shaped copper light-emitting elements arrayed in a torus.
For reference only, credit: Commonwealth Fusion Systems, 2023
For reference only, credit: Commonwealth Fusion Systems, 2023
For reference only, credit: Commonwealth Fusion Systems, 2023

Meaning Through Interaction

Through a guest’s interaction, the artwork moves between three narrative beats: opportunity, ecosystem, and roadmap.

In the first narrative beat, we see the world as it is today: just one illuminated light mirrors the imbalance of our world’s energy needs versus our available resources. The single light then expands to become many, representing fusion’s potential to meet global demand.

Second, we see a representation of the current fusion energy ecosystem: lights move in disconnected, staccato rhythms signaling a lack of alignment within the industry. The lights then find a clearer rhythm, mirroring the momentum, focus, and the commercialization approach which CFS is bringing to the fusion industry.

Finally, the torus of light becomes a temporal roadmap, illuminating each light in sequence until we see a completed torus. The light becomes incredibly intense, spilling into the entirety of the room: limitless possibility. This sequence demonstrates CFS’ vision to deploy 10,000 ARCs (the world’s first fusion power plants) by 2050.