# Argonne and UIC project supercomputer data visualizations onto THE MART facade in Chicago

- Published: 2026-11-07 01:57 UTC
- Section: Digital & Computing › Computers
- Tags: Argonne National Laboratory, scientific visualization, THE MART Chicago, ALCF supercomputers, Electronic Visualization Laboratory
- URL: https://realtech.media/news/rt-9e426d5a90f93759014f2013_argonne_and_uic/

**A public projection mapping installation demonstrates decades of scientific research across 2.5 acres of urban building facade.**

![Argonne and UIC project supercomputer data visualizations onto THE MART facade in Chicago](https://www.anl.gov/sites/www/files/2026-09/aotm_with%20people_resize.jpg)
*anl.gov*

Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Illinois Chicago launched a public scientific projection titled "Where Data Becomes Light: The Beauty of Scientific Visualization" on September 10 in Chicago, as reported by anl.gov [1]. The visual installation is projected onto the 2.5-acre facade of THE MART as part of the ART on THE MART program. The projection runs Thursdays through Sundays from 7:30 to 8:00 p.m. until November 15, appearing twice in each 30-minute block alongside visual materials from the Adler Planetarium [1].

## Scientific Datasets

The initiative brings together the Argonne Leadership Computing Facility and the Electronic Visualization Laboratory at UIC under the leadership of Michael Papka and Daria Tsoupikova [1]. Every sequence displayed in the installation originated directly from empirical datasets and computational models rather than purely artistic concepts [1]. Viewers see visualizations of early mathematical formulations, graphene interactions with nanodiamonds, materials science processes, human lung airways, and the movement of a cancer cell through a blood vessel [1].

Additional segments cover astrophysics and geophysical simulations, including hurricane structures, turbulent fluids, nuclear fusion, black holes, and the large-scale evolution of the universe [1]. The underlying data was generated over decades of simulations and calculations utilizing leadership-class supercomputers at Argonne and partner facilities of the U.S. Department of Energy [1].

## Computational Adaptation

ALCF visualization specialists Joseph Insley, Silvio Rizzi, Victor Mateevitsi, and Janet Knowles adapted massive simulation results into animations suitable for a 25-story building [1]. Datasets required re-rendering to maintain visual clarity from distances exceeding 100 feet across the Chicago River [1]. Sound design for the installation was created by Silvio Rizzi [1]. According to the authors, the project demonstrates how data rendering serves both as a functional investigative tool for researchers and an open public communication medium [1].

## Sources

1. [anl.gov](https://www.anl.gov/article/scientific-visualizations-light-up-chicago-at-art-on-the-mart)
2. [newswise.com](https://www.newswise.com/articles/the-virtues-of-visualizing-science)

---

Source: RealTech, realtech.media — https://realtech.media/news/rt-9e426d5a90f93759014f2013_argonne_and_uic/