17Jun
Tracey Dear + Derek Barran: Pier Happening Light-Show for Totland Pier 2001
I was privileged to see this whole in-situ (location-specific) light show, watching from the Waterfront bar as the American lighting and video artist Tracy Dear worked his magic at Derek Barran’s Totland Pier - Derek had bought the near derelict pier a few years previously, and converted the seaward amusement arcade into a very fine artists studio. The Pier Happening lasted about half an hour - and was a ecstatic demo of colour harmonics - with point-source lighting on and under the Pier, programmed to create magic.“Tracey made his name in the lighting design field in 1998, with a desire to use his vast knowledge of event lighting to pursue architectural projects. He approached the Mayor’s office in Chicago with the idea to illuminate the bridges that span the Chicago River, an installation that would be one of the largest of its kind in the world. A dazzling array of 160 computer-controlled fixtures over 11 bridges, this sensational display immediately established Tracey as a fresh, innovative designer, and a leader in the field. With the lighting of the historic Totland Bay Pier on the Isle of Wight, Tracey cemented his international reputation in this highly specialized market.”
Tracey Dear + Derek Barran: Pier Happening Light-Show for Totland Pier 2000
This was a gas - Tracey had installed coloured lights and a controlling switch system to implement a beautifully crafted video of a location-specific light-show plus 'happening'. When I talked to Tracey in California recently, looking for one of the videos he had shot of the Pier Happening - he said he had just finished a video for Island band Wet Leg - how cool was that?
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