San Jose Semaphore
Ben Rubin

Date: 2006, 2012
Client: Adobe

Ben Rubin’s San Jose Semaphore is a multimedia installation whose central feature is a high intensity LED display system that was designed, furnished and installed by Parallel. The piece is mounted behind the curtain wall of Adobe’s headquarters in San Jose and renders four large rotating discs in amber light. Each of the four discs is 10 feet in diameter and uses 6,000 one watt Luxeon LEDs mounted on aluminum circuit boards. The display system is housed in lightweight, low profile enclosures that are bolted to the mullions. Despite a heavy acid etch on the glass, the discs are visible during the daylight and can be seen from miles away.

As of October 2012 the Semaphore is broadcasting a new code. Take a crack at it here!