An Interactive Escalator Experience in London’s H&M Flagship Store

Customers taking the escalators in H&M’s newly redesigned flagship store on London’s Regent Street may find themselves unwitting collaborators in a larger-than-life generative art display. A double 4K resolution LED screen by Leyard Europe covers the entire rear wall of the store, framing a set of escalators. Created by London-based design and technology studio Hirsh & Mann in collaboration with H&M and supported by creative coding company Variable, the LED canvas responds to customer movement on the escalators. Hirsch & Mann CEO Daniel Hirschmann described the artwork’s materials:

“Their appeal is also in their ability to behave as a physical fabric might do when manipulated in real life, with the virtual, directional wind within the 3D scene allowing the partly-floating curated materials to gently move by default, and to become more dynamic every time an H&M customer uses the store escalators to move between the ground and the first floor.”

As customers ascend and descend the escalator, a series of 3D depth cameras attached to the store’s ceiling identify each person’s position on the escalators, creating a rippling effect behind the person. If more than three people use the escalator in proximity, the system registers their presence as a collective unit. “This subtle reaction to people’s presence creates a fun moment of surprise and acknowledges customers by passively inviting them to leave an ephemeral mark on the canvas,” said Hirschmann. London-based LEDTek Solutions installed the LED screen, which is one of the largest indoors in Europe. Leyard Europe’s Luke Marler-Hausen said the company was able to overcome a unique set of challenges with the installation, such as the tight space from the wall to the escalators. H&M revealed the redesigned store at the end of 2022.