Customs House will be shining both inside and out this month with animated projections, illuminated sculptures and a Twilight Garden light-art installation.
SuperLux (Smart Light Cities), a major new exhibition exploring sustainable lighting, until 17 October, will feature the work of some of the world’s leading artists working in the ‘smart light’ field.
Lord Mayor Clover Moore said smart lighting was about more than just reducing your carbon footprint and saving on energy bills.
“The growth of smart lighting as a creative field has really changed the role of light in our cities at night, inspiring us to think differently about how we illuminate public spaces,” the Lord Mayor said.
“This SuperLux show will transform Customs House, pushing the boundaries of what’s possible and encouraging us to use our limited resources sustainably.”
SuperLux co-curator Mike Day, creative lighting director of the BEAMS arts festival and a lecturer at the University of Technology Sydney’s School Of Design, said one highlight of the show will be the Twilight Garden.
“Designed by artist Mary-Anne Kyriakou, the work is reminiscent of a Persian garden and sits on a black reflective pond with a dozen 1.5-metre tall columns growing out of it that are covered in lighting, featuring plants and human bone forms,” Mr Day said.
“I’ll also be lighting the Customs House façade with warm lighting to showcase its beautiful sandstone, and inside I’ll be bringing the miniature model of Sydney to life with little laser dots that will make it appear that there are hordes of people scurrying about.”
“The ground floor models’ George Street will also be glowing with white light to showcase its importance as the main street of Sydney.”
The show is inspired by the new book, SuperLux: Smart Light Art, Design And Architecture For Cities, edited by Davina Jackson and published by Thames & Hudson.
The exhibition will feature images from the book, as well as installations, video and projections by a range of artists working in the smart light field.
Other works created specifically for Customs House include Damian Gascoigne’s Four Shore, a mysterious movie projection with sound that creates a series of natural elements that appear to grow up the building’s spiral staircase.
Galaxia 3, by Alan Rose, will illuminate the laneway behind Customs House with colour and tricks of light.
SuperLux (Smart Light Cities) Exhibition
Until 17 October 2015
Customs House, 31 Alfred Street, Circular Quay
For more information, visit http://superlux.org/superlux-exhibition/.
Media Release: City Of Sydney
Sydney Spectaculars 