Phosphene: A Collaborative Exploration of Light, Materiality, and Environment

Phosphene is an innovative duo dedicated to investigating the interplay of light, darkness, and materiality within both site-specific spaces, and the objects we live with. We aim to evoke immersive experiences that challenge perceptions, deepen environmental awareness, and unveil the subtle yet profound qualities of our surroundings.

Our practice is rooted in rigorous experimentation, material manipulation, and contextual sensitivity. Phosphene was formed in 2025, but individually the principals have over 25 years of practice each in their areas of expertise and have collaborated together since 2019. Alli Hoag, Associate Professor of Glass and Glass Area Head at Bowling Green State University, brings her extensive expertise in glass as a medium for exploring the human desire to connect with the unperceivable. Her work, spanning installation, video, and performance, probes the physical and emotional boundaries of perception, emphasizing the role of light and material presence in fostering intimate engagement with space. Catie Newell, Professor of Architecture at the University of Michigan and founding principal of Alibi Studio, contributes a sophisticated architectural and design lens to our collaborative inquiry. Her work, characterized by site-specific installations, detailed craftsmanship, and a focus on the articulation of light, explores the atmospheric qualities of space, emphasizing how textures, geometries, and material effects influence perception and experience.

Together, we integrate our diverse expertise—combining glass craftsmanship, architectural sensibility, and conceptual experimentation. Our projects investigate how our environment can shift our perceptual lens, influence our psychoemotional state, and impact our physical well-being. We live in a reciprocal relationship with the environment and objects around us—how can we create objects, lighting, and installations that strengthen this relationship? Our approach is to design solutions that are informed by research on human environmental response- such as circadian rhythms, and soft fascination- to enrich the human experience of space and engender wellbeing.

At Phosphene, our collaborative process emphasizes the essential act of fabrication—translating detailed research and artistic intention into tangible forms that resonate on both physical and metaphorical levels. Whether through ephemeral installations, public interventions, immersive environments, or designed objects and lighting, our work seeks to reveal the unseen, provoke curiosity, and deepen our collective understanding of space and materiality.

We invite viewers and communities to join us in this ongoing exploration—illuminating the darkness, embracing the unknown, and engaging with the subtle but powerful language of material and light.