Aberdeen Poised with illuminated leopard
- Details
The work was commissioned by Muse Developments and Aviva Investors and was inspired by the City of Aberdeen’s ancient heraldic coat of arms, which features two leopards. The majestic beast is five metres high, with another five-metre reach for the tail hanging below. It weighs two tonnes.
It is internally lit by 11 x Anolis ArcSource Outdoor 4MC LED fixtures.
The leopard’s lighting design - to bring it alive after dark - was created by Scottish based lighting and environmental design practice Atelier Ten, also responsible for lighting all the Marischal Square commercial, retail and leisure spaces for Muse Developments.
For Atelier Ten’s Peter Kerr, the leopard lighting scheme started when Andy Scott sent him initial sketches of the piece, which gave a good sense of scale and shape. Once the leopard’s frame was completed they started making the first site visits together with Angus Cartwright from Glasgow based Cartwright Lighting Associates, who supplied the Anolis fixtures and control system.
Aberdeen is dark for much of the year due to its northern latitude, so for Andy - well known for large scale works like The Kelpies’ 30-metre-high horse-head sculptures next to a new Forth and Clyde Canal extension - and everyone else involved, creating a “year-round 24-hour experience” was essential.
Andy always intended the leopard to be internally lit - it is a technique he’s used before and he knew it would look fabulous combined with the right lighting fixtures.
His knowledge and imagination, plus the lighting expertise of Peter and Angus, pinpointed the perfect fixing positions for the ArcSource Outdoor 4MCs, which were chosen by Peter as the lightsources from numerous options trialled once the leopard’s skin was in place, both on site and at Andy’s workshop in Glasgow.
The challenges included getting the desired seamless, even coverage of light all over the leopard essential to capturing it’s potent implied movement … and reducing any potential spill and glare coming off the sculpture’s lighting which might affect / distract workers in the nearby offices with their extensive wall-to-ceiling windows.
The Anolis fixtures are positioned in the hind legs, shoulders, head and top of the tail, although looking at it, it’s almost impossible to tell as they are exceptionally well concealed. The ArcSource power supplies driving the lights are remotely fitted within the courtyard’s basement, while all cabling is concealed in the column.
The lighting is controlled via an Anolis ArcPower 36 DMX controller complete with a scene setting user interface.
The leopard took over a year to complete and now installed, has already become a great local talking point and a tourist attraction.
(Jim Evans)
