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LTP and Field of Play at Bristol Harbourside
Lighting Technology Projects (LTP) has installed and programmed a new piece of interactive light art, composed from 10,000 nodes of ColorKinetics’ iColor Flex SL LED-based strand, custom produced for the project, complete with transparent channels.
Artist Tim Knowles was commissioned to create several contemporary artworks in the regenerated Harbourside area by developers Crest Nicholson PLC, of which ‘Field of Play’ (or the ‘Lightwall’) is the largest and funkiest!
Measuring an impressive 48 metres wide by 12 metres tall, it is constituted from 288 vertical lines of Flex, staggered - as per the original design concept – at between 50 and 700 mm widths, with varying drops. It runs along the sides of two buildings at the ever-evolving Bristol Harbourside development, giving the surfaces an edgy, random vibe - as opposed to a uniform and flat coverage of the building.
All Knowles’ work is generated by processes ‘beyond his control’. ‘Field of Play’ is an interactive light drawing created – sometimes unwittingly - by the public as they move around Millennium Square.
The Edinburgh office of lighting architects Speirs and Major became involved as consultants for specifying the Lightwall’s illuminative elements, and they in turn approached LTP as specialist lighting contractors and also CK’s preferred UK installers.
Kier Build were the main site contractors for Buildings 11 and 8 at Harbourside. The Lightwall runs along the full side of Building 11 facing Millennium Square and part way along that of building 8, which also houses the Ibis Hotel. Kier retained LTP to supply, fit and commission the work in an operation led by LTP’s Jonathan Adkins, who co-operated closely with Building 11’s building and estates manager, Adam Kay. They also worked with Sean Westgate from Green Hippo, who supplied the Hippotizer media server that sits at the heart of the control system.
The Flex is attached to a special cage built on to the front of the building, and the Lightwall is backlit with 60 CK ColorBlast 12 LED fixtures, attached to the front of the cage. LTP fitted 200 power/data enablers to carry Ethernet and DMX signals from the CK video system manager and Hippotizer in the control room out to the Flex and ColorBlasts.
LTP’s Terry Reeves reckons that “breaking all the rules of data - for distance and obstacles” was one of the biggest technical challenges of the job. The data path negotiates numerous walls and risers inside the building on its way back to the control room, located on the opposite side of building. Four links – two Ethernet and two DMX – were taken underground from Building 11 and back up via the Ibis Hotel, to link the smaller section of Lightwall on Building 8 into the system. This made these runs alone over 300 metres and pushing the distance limits of Ethernet.
LTP also had the galvanising task of getting feeds from the two roof-mounted cameras down to the control centre located on the lightwall itself. This in turn continues the signal down to the main Building 11 control room and the Hippotizer, along with the RS 232 photo cell control signals which are also run through the Hippotizer.
Green Hippo were contracted directly to produce the custom mapping software and movement tracking system needed to make ‘Field of Play’ interactive.
As people, skaters, cyclists, animals and assorted objects of all descriptions traverse Millennium Square, their motion is picked up by the cameras. This is relayed to the Hippotizer, converted into RGB signals and sent to the Canapus digital interface, which outputs digital video . . . making the assorted motions appear as colour-changing ‘light trails’ on the Lightwall.
LTP also worked with Green Hippo on the content delivery side the project. The extensive mapping within the video system manager was a great brain-teasing exercise - as it was creating a virtual world by mapping the real one!
One of the reasons Flex was chosen, was for its innate flexibility – in this instance it needed to be physically contoured to the building. The custom mapping that was an integral part of LTP’s commissioning service really benefited from the product’s adaptability in this context.
13th February 2007
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