E/T/C London supplied projection equipment and expertise for the event, which was staged by Glasgow City Council. The artwork was produced by Ross Ashton, whose work was already known to the Council.
Burns Illuminated's project manager, John Toffolo, commissioned Ashton to create a projection show for the George Square site telling the story and massive cultural legacy of Burns' short life.
This consisted of hundreds of images, a combination of those sourced from the Mitchell Library in Glasgow (home to one of the largest collections of Burns material) and bespoke PIGI artwork created for the show by Ashton. The script was developed by researcher Ralph Richard McLean, and the extensive picture research required was undertaken by David Freckleton of Culture & Sport Glasgow.
The 15 minute looped show was accompanied by a soundscape compiled by Karen Monid, with whom Ashton worked closely. This featured a narration by Hannah Donaldson, a host of environmental sound effects and carefully selected music, all associated with Burns and his work.
Four PIGI 6kW projectors with double rotating scrollers were chosen to optimise the projection, with two positioned close to the building at ground level and two further back and higher up. The projectors were all housed in custom constructed and fully weatherised hides. This layout enabled the central section of the building - obscured by the war memorial - to be illuminated by crossing over the beams of the closer projectors.
Ashton comments: "This was another amazing project to work on, and it produced some great teamwork by all involved from the conception to the physical delivery."
(Jim Evans)
