Leysdown lights
Leysdown on Sea is a small seaside resort on the North Kent Coast with a population of 3,000 during the winter, which expands to over 6,000 during the summer. Leysdown Rose-Tinted is an arts project that commissioned 12 new permanent art works. 11 of the commissions take into account the exposure to the elements in the seaside location and had to withstand extreme weather conditions and have a life span of at least 10 years. All the commissions were informed by Leysdown’s character, natural beauty, heritage and people and were designed to reflect on its personality, also to enhance and redefine its identity for both residents and visitors to the village. Community involvement was key to a successful commissioning process. Over 1,000 people have been involved in the project with a further 1,000 plus visiting the information online.
My project was to design and make 60 m of temporary seaside lighting with the involvement of the local residents and schools. I created a unique and bespoke lighting scheme for Leysdown on the theme of flight, embracing man’s early exploration of flying (Leysdown was the site of the powered first flight in the UK) and the birds found on the marshes of the RSPB and Natural England sites that surround Leysdown. A working group from the local resident community was set up to take the commission forward. Throughout the commissioning process the group were included and informed of the development of the work. This helped with advocacy and provided them with a valuable insight into an artist-led project. I provided residents and visitors with experiences and opportunities during the commission through artist workshops, consultations and presentations. Year 5 & 6 pupils from local Primary School in Leysdown worked closely with me helping to design the new LED programmed lighting scheme.
My project was to design and make 60 m of temporary seaside lighting with the involvement of the local residents and schools. I created a unique and bespoke lighting scheme for Leysdown on the theme of flight, embracing man’s early exploration of flying (Leysdown was the site of the powered first flight in the UK) and the birds found on the marshes of the RSPB and Natural England sites that surround Leysdown. A working group from the local resident community was set up to take the commission forward. Throughout the commissioning process the group were included and informed of the development of the work. This helped with advocacy and provided them with a valuable insight into an artist-led project. I provided residents and visitors with experiences and opportunities during the commission through artist workshops, consultations and presentations. Year 5 & 6 pupils from local Primary School in Leysdown worked closely with me helping to design the new LED programmed lighting scheme.
The Communications Officer from the RSPB, supported the artist’s modelmaking workshops research trips to the beach with the children; looking at the movement of flight found in the natural habitat on their doorstep. “ The Lights are fully programmable they can change colour, chase, fade and flash. There is space for 200 different sequences, the current ones designed with the school are informed by the seaside amusements and bird flight patterns made by their wings or when flying as a flock. This project extended my experience in designing durable installations as I needed to ensure that the complex and delicate state of the art radio controlled digital lighting system was reliable in a very harsh and extreme environment.
I am now looking to making this a permanent feature of Leysdown
Materials Acrylic Tube LED Lights Computer Controller,
Size 60m x 8m
Date 2013
Site Leysdown on Sea, Kent UK
Consultants Tall Engineering, Abbey Distribution, Estracon Lighting
I am now looking to making this a permanent feature of Leysdown
Materials Acrylic Tube LED Lights Computer Controller,
Size 60m x 8m
Date 2013
Site Leysdown on Sea, Kent UK
Consultants Tall Engineering, Abbey Distribution, Estracon Lighting