Close
0%
0%

Mood Light Matches Any Color You Tap on the Art

A smart painting with a mood light. Tap on any color on this beautiful artwork, and its integrated smart light will instantly replicate it!

Similar projects worth following
This piece represents a stunning fusion of art and technology. The painting itself is a modern take on Picasso-style cubist work, with five vibrant, distinct colors. Hidden behind the canvas are capacitive touch sensors, cleverly detecting which area of the painting is being touched. The integrated RGB LED strip then dynamically shifts its color to match the hue selected on the canvas. It's a beautiful blend of interactive mood lighting and fine art, all in one stunning creation.

The making of this piece of art was captured into a beautiful short film, which you can watch by playing the YouTube video above.

painting_moodlight.ino

Main arduino code

ino - 2.52 kB - 03/25/2025 at 17:44

Download

ArtCollection.pdf

A collection of suitable artworks

Adobe Portable Document Format - 327.27 kB - 03/25/2025 at 17:44

Preview

  • 1 × Xiao SAMD21
  • 1 × WS2813 LED strip 1m
  • 5 × TTP223 touch sensor

  • 1
    The Artwork

    First, we need the painting itself. You can either paint it yourself (which I highly recommend since it adds such a personal touch and makes it truly authentic) or get an existing artwork printed. I've attached a PDF with a bunch of beautiful artworks if you want to pick one and print it. Just a heads-up, those aren't my own creations. I've collected them from Pinterest and other places over time, so they're strictly for personal use, not for commercial use.

    I decided to go the DIY route and make my own painting. I started with a rough sketch to get the basic idea down.

    Then, I added the five colors using poster paints (you can totally use more colors, but you'll need a touch sensor for each one!).

    Finally, I did the line work with black poster paint.

  • 2
    Solder the Touch sensors

    Next, we'll prepare the touch sensors with some soldering.

    Follow these steps:

    • Ground (GND) Connections: Solder all the GND pads of your touch sensors (five, or the number corresponding to your colors) together. Use enough wire between each sensor to allow you to position them freely later.
    • Power (VCC) Connections: Similarly, solder all the VCC pads of the sensors together, again using sufficient wire lengths for flexibility.
    • Signal (I/O) Connections: Attach a single wire to the Signal (I/O) pin of each individual sensor. These wires will be connected to the microcontroller, so ensure they are of adequate length for easy placement.

  • 3
    Justway

    Part of this project was sponsored by Justway.

    Justway offers a comprehensive suite of solutions, including CNC machining, 3D printing, sheet metal fabrication, injection molding, and urethane casting, offering rapid prototyping and mass production solutions. With an extensive network of specialized factories, Justway ensures top-quality products tailored to your needs.

    Here are the steps to get your project 3D printed by Justway's 3D printing service.

    First, head over to Justway's 3D printing service and select 3D printing. You also have options like CNC machining, injection Molding and Urethane Casting. But for this project, we will use the 3D printing service.

    Click on "upload your design". A new page will appear. Here, you need to click on "Select CAD files" and upload the STL file.

    After that, select the Quantity, Material (I recommend PLA or ABS for this project). In the color section, you can either select white and paint it later, or select the color you like directly in the 3D print. This will save time later.

    Finally, after selecting all the options, you can enter your email and submit the request to get a quote.

    Justway is a great option, especially for complex prints which might be tricky to print at home with low-end printers. Plus, you get options like surface finishing and resin 3D prints.

View all 8 instructions

Enjoy this project?

Share

Discussions

Frank Cohen wrote 04/09/2025 at 17:31 point

Beautiful project. The video too, stylish and inspiring. Have you considered using conductive paint? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjFeeptoilI

  Are you sure? yes | no

Makestreme wrote 04/11/2025 at 09:07 point

That's a good idea. The video is quite interesting, I didn't know about that process. Thanks for sharing! However, I believe since iron oxide is black, getting brighter colors like yellow or red will be difficult using this method. But I'm pretty sure we can buy conductive paint off the shelf. 

  Are you sure? yes | no

Frank Cohen wrote 6 days ago point

Thanks, glad to help with ideas. You would continue using colored paints, the black graphite conductive paint would be as an outline or a thin grid to detect when you're touching within one of the colors.

  Are you sure? yes | no

Similar Projects

Does this project spark your interest?

Become a member to follow this project and never miss any updates