After dark, fifteen select artists activate and brighten public spaces, buildings, objects and surfaces along Auckland’s waterfront as part of an illuminated art display.

‘Move Towards the Light’ is a collaboration between the artists, Britomart, Ports of Auckland and Auckland Council organisations. Art installations are peppered between Britomart in the east and Silo Park in the west, and the pieces allude to the guiding principles of Matariki, the Maori New Year.

Britomart art installations

Six art installations at Britomart will feature in the display including:

Chris Bailey – Pou Tū Te Rangi
Pou Tū Te Rangi  is located in Britomart’s Sanctuary Garden and Waiheke-based artist Chris Bailey says the work explores concepts including te kotahitanga (being as one), te piritahi (coming together), and te mahi tahi (working as one). The work has a particular resonance for the Britomart community, often described by locals as being more like a family than a business precinct.

Jae Noon Lee – A Leaf
 A Leaf  is a video projection at Stanbeth House that captures the underlying theme of transparency by using a time-lapsed version of a leaf's life cycle through the period of a year.

John Radford – Lux Flux
Lux Flux consists of 200 small, clear LED lights and incandescent bulbs scattered across the rear facade of Old Sofrana House, one of the 18 heritage buildings preserved as part of the Britomart urban renewal project. Pedestrian movements through the precinct trigger the lights, causing them to flicker across the 110-year-old facade in a seemingly random 15-second sequence.

Peter Stoneham – Sine Language
Sine Language was sponsored by Auckland based illumination artist, Peter Stoneham. It was developed especially for the artist by an international team of laserists. The start and end point for Sine Language is the circle, and the display will be located at Takutai Square.

Peter says, "Only mathematics can visually articulate such wonderfully complex patterns and what better way to show it than in light."

Shannon Novak – Melodic Flourish
Melodic Flourish is a work by artist Shannon Novak, who experiences sound-to-colour synaesthesia, and expresses melody as art works composed of brilliant colour and geometric shapes. This particular piece consists of four printed translucent film panels, applied onto glass and backlit. In this work, the colours and shapes don’t represent specific notes, says Shannon. Rather, they’re a collective synaesthetic response to his exploration of traditional waiata.

Melodic Flourish is located at Atrium on Takutai.

Tim Gruchy – SCOUT
SCOUT, a resident in Takutai Square, is an 8m-tall interactive installation by multimedia artist Tim Gruchy. It is designed to respond to its environment – changes in light, temperature, weather, sound, movement and touch – and communicate back via active screen and sound systems. Sophisticated mathematical programming allows SCOUT to ‘interpret’ stimuli from built-in sensors and determine seemingly logical responses.

The ‘Move Towards the Light’ display will run over two weekends from 20 – 22 July and 26 – 29 July 2012.  

Read more about art at Britomart
Visit ‘Move Towards the Light’ website
Download map