Entering the world of Disco Cubes is like stepping into a pool of liquid light. 

One night of listless gray scrolling on Instagram suddenly turned electric when I discovered the warm hues and icy flora and fauna of this experimental, ‘70s-infused photography project. Hallmarks of this acclaimed nightlife installation by DJ, photographer and ice artist Leslie Kirchhoff include mini sculptures, melting models, and herbs or other garnishes encased in glassy ice of all shapes and sizes. Inspired by herbs haphazardly sprinkled on top of ice cubes in her cocktail at a Soho hotel bar, and the highly-concentrated coffee cubes in her cup at a Noho restaurant, Kirchhoff took her experiences with Manhattan’s frozen liquids and began to tinker.

Traveling the world as a DJ, and deeply connected to the aesthetics of light and framing from her work as a photographer, it wasn’t long before Kirchhoff’s cold creations took on a life of their own. Moving to Los Angeles in October of 2017, she settled in Eagle Rock and began working on turning ice into art — and photographing the results — in earnest. Drawing on memories of fish trapped under the ice from her Wisconsin childhood, Kirchhoff’s preferred palette of reds, oranges, and yellows glimmered into the kind of visual theme that’s both unmistakably millennial and inherently timeless. Part ice company, part creative studio, and part photography project, Disco Cubes quickly gained momentum on Instagram.

Hired by brands like Glossier, Playboy, and Nike to bring an extra pop to their parties, and featured in Vogue and The New York Times, Kirchhoff now combines her work as a DJ who is already skilled at setting the mood for events with the “mad scientist” aesthetics of her ice-making (her words, not mine) to bring the world of Disco Cubes to others. Now, she’s bringing it into your home as well, with a soon-to-be released book of cocktail recipes, Disco Cube Cocktails, out through Chronicle Books in April 2020. Recently, Leslie took some time out of her intensely busy schedule to discuss the project — and her new book — with us. Read our conversation below, and pre-order her book here — your at-home cocktail game will thank you.

CAITLIN WHITE: What is your background as an artist, and how do you describe your work now?
LESLIE KIRCHOFF: Growing up, I was such an artist-artist. I really loved drawing with a pencil and making realistic drawings. But in general, I just loved creating things, and building things, and playing with color. I’ve always loved sunlight and how it moves and changes, and how it can make something average look completely stunning. I stumbled into photography when I was around 15, and I fell in love with it. I think I was drawn to the idea of making art via framing something that exists around you, figuring out how to capture it best, and sharing that beauty with others who may otherwise overlook it.

At the time, I never imagined having an artistic career (I actually wanted to be a surgeon), because I only knew the stereotype of the starving artist. But my parents actually encouraged me to choose the arts instead of medical school.

As for right now, I have a hard time describing Disco Cubes…each time it’s different. But right now it feels like it’s an artistic observation of ice and ice-related things. Ice is both the blank canvas and the subject, and the art exists in both the ice itself and in the photos I take of it before it melts away forever.

(And, of course, Disco Cubes is also an ice company and creative studio.)

I would love to revisit your inspirational moment as cited by The New York Times, ordering a drink with a sub-par lavender ice cube. How did that experience unfold into working with ice as an artform?
[Laughs] I feel so bad about calling out the James Hotel—they have great drinks, I promise. But I’m definitely one of those people who will analyze everything and wonder how it could be improved. That experience in particular likely got me thinking about the buoyancy of objects and the possibility of layering ice, as well as what makes something good to freeze and what doesn’t.

Were there other key moments or experiences that helped shape the work you do now?
As simple as this one is… The iced coffee cubes in the Indochine Iced Coffee at my favorite restaurant, Indochine, in New York, which sparked ideas for flavored cubes.

I love the idea that science is just as much at play in your work as art.
Definitely. I think one of the most fun parts of the whole thing is the experimental aspect of it all. I even call the kitchen “the lab” at the studio, especially at night when it truly transforms into a mad-scientist laboratory. Science is learning about the world around us through observation and experimentation, and to do that through an artistic lens is really fun. 

How do you think the rise of Instagram, as a place for photographers to gain followings, and the idea of the Instagrammable event contributed to your work with Disco Cubes?
Instagram is such a great way for others to take this experimental ride with me. I’m constantly learning and trying new things, and also finding beauty in both the process and the outcome, so it’s amazing to be able to share behind the scenes moments with people.

The “Instagrammable event” is definitely one of the driving forces behind Disco Cubes as a business, but I also argue that the cubes bring much more to a party than just an easy photo op. They truly are mesmerizing to see up close, and I think it’s rare these days to have something new and unusual that sort of boggles the mind, especially when it’s in the form of something so typically mundane, like ice.

You’ve mentioned the influence of Danish designer Verner Panton on your work, when did you first encounter Panton and why did his work stick with you?
I can’t remember when I first found him, but I think I was really drawn to how exciting his environments and creations were. They spark pure joy and awe. And he was an inventor, too, which I love. He was the first to make a single-form injection-molded chair. I just love everything about him. He was able to find a balance between the weird and the practical, and have fun while doing it. 

How important is glassware to the visuals you’re creating with Disco Cubes? What are some tips for selecting glasses?
Very important! Sometimes I work backward and get inspired by the shape of a glass, thinking what would work well in it and complement the shape best. Creating cocktails is like mini-architecture, and the glass is the base—the bones of the structure. I prefer very thin glasses and ones with interesting silhouettes. One goal of Disco Cubes is to get the wheels in your head-turning. When there’s an interestingly shaped glass, your mind may start wondering how it would feel to drink out of it, or how it would feel in your hand. It’s fun to wonder.  

There are so many different shapes of ice, from pebbles to long cylinders and your signature king cubes. Can you talk about how different shapes work in drinks and some of your other favorites?
The smaller the surface area, the slower the cube will melt. A large sphere has the least surface area of all, so it melts the slowest, just barely watering down your drink, but still keeping it cold. Pebble or crushed ice has the most surface area, since there’s a lot of it. This dilutes the drink more quickly. I kept this in mind throughout the book with the flavored ice, since some flavors you want more of (like coconut corn crushed ice) and some you may want a little more slowly, like the pickle brine sphere that goes in whiskey.

Let’s talk about the book, how it came about and what you’re most excited for your fans to get out of that format, as opposed to Instagram or other activations?
Chronicle Books reached out shortly after I launched Disco Cubes—one of their designers had read the launch piece in the New York Times and thought it would make a great cocktail book. So, very suddenly, I was starting to work on it, and reading everything I could about cocktails, ice, and disco history. This is really the first time that someone can bring Disco Cubes into their own life, since prior to the book, they only exist at private events and on Instagram. I also share the best clear ice molds to use, and some tips to making beautiful clear ice at home, which has been a top-secret all along!

Do you take all your own photographs, or work with other photographers as well? (Especially related to the book)
I shoot pretty much everything myself. A while back I worked with my friend Christian Michael Filardo—an amazing photographer who was living in Santa Fe at the time, so we planned a shoot there, both shooting film together while I also took video. But since then, it’s all been my own work. I honestly shoot a good portion of the content on my iPhone, since it’s often just a quick snap in the moment.

The most fascinating thing about your work, to me, is its impermanence. The ice always melts. Can you talk about how that element plays into it? Because I can’t think of many other formats that have that fleeting existence embedded in them.
True. Food is another ephemeral art form…but it’s different. Food is a necessity of life, and ice cubes are not.

But I guess that’s why at its heart, Disco Cubes is a photography project. The ice will go away, but if I catch it in the right light at the right moment, we have the image forever. And maybe that’s why it’s so alluring. To know that at one point, it was there and it was beautiful, but that now it no longer exists. 

I know creators aren’t supposed to play favorites, but do you have a favorite concept or collaboration that really stood out?
I think my favorite project so far has been shooting the book—somehow it already feels like “the good old days.” I was running everything out of my house at the time, so I had all these mini photo sets dominating the place for a few months, and my book-partner-in-crime-product-stylist Shelby and I just attacked each day as a fun and crazy challenge, shooting most of it on film, which was even more tricky. Ice is tough to shoot, but we came up with a great rhythm and had a lot of fun doing it.

The book consumed my life so much that I had to shelve all my other ideas for a while, and I’m still trying to find time to get back to them. But it also gave me time to think and brainstorm about everything I want to do, and I have a lot of exciting things that I’d love to execute very soon.