London looked wonderful lit up for Christmas (here), and it looks pretty spectacular once again thanks to the Lumiere London light installations at various locations across the city. I went "up west" and here are the light installations that delighted me. This colourful version of Westminster Abbey was an amazing transformation, looking more like an Indian temple than a Gothic abbey. It is an installation called The Light of the Spirit (Chapter 2), by Patrice Warrener, and it is absolutely fantastic. Apparently it was created by taking photographs of the building on glass slides, colouring these by hand, and then projecting them back onto the building. The colours really sing against the original white stonework. This initial encounter on the Lumiere trail really set me up to see some good art, and raised my expectations for the other installations.
Trafalgar Square hosts Collectif Coin's installation - Childhood - a field of brilliantly lit white balloons which flash on and off intermittently.
In the near distance there is a neon pink ladder ascending to heaven atop St Martin's-In-The Fields church. Sadly it's not Jacob's Ladder, but the installation - Echelle, by artist Ron Haselden.
Leicester Square was transformed into a delightful garden of flora and fauna. These butterflies are by Jo Pocock and Lantern Company, and entitled - Nightlife. The other animals are also wonderfully crafted. It is an exquisite, magical space.
Another of my favourite installations was this - Flamingo Flyway - again by Jo Pocock and Lantern Company. It's a fabulous flock of illuminated flamingos, swooping and whirling their way around the streets of Chinatown.
An iconic British design classic, Sir Giles Gilbert Scott's K2 telephone box was put to great surreal use as a glorified fish tank on the streets of Covent Garden. It is titled Aquarium, and is by Benedetto Bufalino and Benoit Deseille. I love this so much I want it in my living room!
At Piccadilly Circus meanwhile, the facade of the Hotel Cafe Royal has been hijacked and an animated projection of a clock is used to take viewers on a journey through both time and space. It was noisy, colourful, and a real showstopper. It is entitled Voyage, and is by Camille Gross and Leslie Epsztein.
Then it was back to St James's church, (the subject of my last post), to be greeted on the exterior by Tracey Emin's Be Faithful to Your Dreams, (above), a nice signature, neon text piece. The purpose of coming here was to revisit Arabella Dorman's Suspended, to see it lit at night. It looked so different. The shadows thrown by the clothes are like ghostly figures projected onto the walls. On the outside of St James's to the rear you will find - My Light is Your Light, a group of bent, linear Lowryesque-figures by Alaa Minawi (below).
At the Royal Academy of Arts there is a dramatic Matisse-inspired animated installation - Love Motion - by Rhys Coren.
The Superdry clothes chain building at 103 Regent Street hosts another impressive projected installation - Frictions - by duo Mader Weirmann. It is accompanied by another loud, thumping soundtrack.
Julian Opie's much quieter - Shaida Walking 2015, in Soho.
Bare bulbs on Carnaby Street are a light installation - The Plug and Bulbs, by James Glancy Design. They will apparently, be a permanent installation which is a very stylish plus for the area.
I loved these psychedelic lava-lamp-like projections at Oxford Circus. The colours were so strong and vibrant. They are part of Miguel Chevalier's Origin of the World Bubble 2018, and are understandably inspired by microbiology, and the movement of cells. Disappointingly there was no promised big bubble, probably due to health and safety concerns because of the strong winds experienced the night before Lumiere London opened, and a previous failed attempt to install the bubble last week, again because of high winds.
Robyn Wright's Neon Bicycles in Mayfair. They inspired a number of interactive poses from visitors destined no-doubt for Instagram feeds.
Aleksandra Stratimirovic's contemplative Northern Lights, bringing the spirit of the aurora borealis to Grosvenor Square.
Michael Davis's Illumaphonium was fun, and noisy, with visitors needing no invitation or encouragement to bang out a tune.
A poetic, lone nightingale sings in Berkeley Square to the music of the same song. It is Cedric Le Borgne's installation - Was That a Dream? A quietly beautiful piece this one.
This piece above - Reflektor - by Studio Roso was an interesting optical illusion. It looked from the front like a huge suspended globe glistening, reflecting the light and throwing out fractured shards of colour, but interestingly on closer investigation was flat in design.
This installation is entitled - Supercube, by artist Stephane Masson, and bizarrely features footage of a group of women individually captured in 448 Kilner jars. I found this one particularly compelling in its oddness.
Cycles of colour from the London Eye. Our permanent light installation.
And lastly there was Burlington Arcade, as always keeping it classy. Lumiere London 2018 was literally quite brilliant. Bring on the 2019 edition!
Lumiere London
until 21st January
various locations
https://www.visitlondon.com/lumiere
