Luminous at Darling Quarter

Luminous Interactive digital art platform was the brainchild of Lend Lease Group in collaboration with Ramus Illumination, and is billed, according to the Wall Street Journal, as 'the world's biggest interactive permanent light display'. It was officially opened in the Darling Quarter Precinct in Sydney Central Business District (CBD) on 18 May 2012.

Luminous at Darling Quarter is a permanent platform solely for illuminated digital 'art' – both animated and static. The 'canvas' extends over four levels of two campus-style buildings, covering 557 windows in total, and presents a digital façade spanning a distance of 150 metres. The artistic and design direction was set by international light artist Bruce Ramus, with Ramus studio responsible for design management and production of the work. Fixtures were manufactured by Australian architectural lighting specialists Klik Systems using advanced LED systems.

Interactive
Interactive technology by iion, in collaboration with Ramus Illumination, activates the canvas and gives Luminous a social/web presence

Interactive content is available from 6pm, Friday through Sunday, with touch screen kiosks in Tumbalong Park allowing the general public to paint their own digital designs and play over-scaled arcade games on the buildings in front of them. Web surfers can also play using their smart phone or contribute on their computer through a dedicated website. The online component of Luminous has similarities to Project Blinkenlights, a Berlin digital light installation, but expands the concept for the general public, allowing user-friendly interaction in an unprecedented way.

Luminous concept

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia occupying the buildings is joint partner in the project along with the Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority and Lend Lease. The consortium selected Bruce Ramus[1] as the first artist, Artistic Director and Lighting Designer for Luminous. Canadian-born Ramus made his name lighting stage shows for U2 and David Bowie, and is design mentor for Sydney Opera House.

Technology

At Darling Quarter, each window forms a 'pixel' in the canvas, lit with Klik Systems's energy efficient LEDs, and seen from a distance can form a coherent animated picture. A sophisticated colour palette is available thanks to white LEDs added to the standard RGB (red, green, blue) colours. The system is also capable of integrating music: graphic synchronization allows for sound-based designs to be visualized on the canvas.

Contrary to many light installations, direct light is minimized to viewers, instead using the automated timber louvers to reflect light from Klik System's linear LEDs (running along the windowsills, angled upwards with a 10-degree spreader lens). The entire project offsets almost all its energy use, thanks to photo-voltaic panels on the roof of both Darling Quarter buildings. The project allegedly uses the same power as 5 household vacuum cleaners.

Darling Quarter

Lend Lease designed and constructed Darling Quarter for owner APPF Commercial and first proposed the idea of a permanent space for illuminated art. Darling Quarter precinct includes a community green, children’s playground, and a large number of world-food restaurants, cafes and bars, and reflects Lend Lease’s enthusiasm for iconic new spaces for future generations.

The digital façade is in action six evenings a week. On Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, displaying ‘soft’ images (such as clouds or waves). On Friday, Saturday and Sunday 'Luminous' displays interactive artworks that aim to invite debate and make art critics – and artists - of every citizen and visitor.

Sydney has a growing reputation for light shows, particularly due to the annual VIVID Sydney festival and the SPARC DESIGN lighting conferences at the Museum of Modern Art, which are regularly sponsored by Klik Systems and other long term supporters in the Australian lighting industry. Vivid Sydney was inaugurated in 2008, curated in 2010 by Laurie Anderson and Lou Reed and is billed as an international carbon-neutral festival of Light, Music and Ideas. The 2012 musical line-up includes Sufjan Stevens and Florence & The Machine.

References
  1. "Profile - Ramus". Ramus. Retrieved 15 August 2018.

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