Best known for their Massive Attack concert visuals, UK’s UVA were recently gifted the chance to provide some opening night light and sound at Santra Istanbul, a major new contemporary art museum ( and accompanying energy museum ) set in a sequence of multi-storey buildings that were once upon a time, a crackling power plant for the region. Lots of that electricity making infrastructure has been kept in place, both inside and outside the buildings, a ripe canvas for the prominent lighting and graphics crew to do their thing.
And so, light and colour sequences were introduced, the building being lit up inside and out, the light sequences gradually becoming more complex ( choreographed by UVA’s custom software ). The large outdoor sound system was finely milked by Jude Greenaway ( who often does music with The Light Surgeons – who btw – have a new project related blog rolling along… New Adventures in Folklore), and finally high-powered video projectors were added to the mix, with a blend of archival footage relating to the site, abstract graphics and at the climax a series of video sequences custom made to fit exactly, then oscillate between certain sections of the architecture. Almost over before it started, it was a smooth display, but lacking some magic to carry their reputation as far as previous projects have. Apparently the system will be a permanent installation however, able to be utilised in various ways for different events. A recent UVA interview highlights their greatest hits of late ( with video links), alongside good insights into their processes.
[…] is in graphic design and cross media art. I now work with several other designers and artists, Jude Greenaway who also records as Scanone and provides lots of audio material as well as editing and animation […]
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[…] UnitedVisualArtists, known for their Massive Attack concert visuals, provided the opening night light and sound at Santra […]