Art installation – when you hear those words, what visions are created in your mind? Now think about an art installation based not far from Uluru (Ayers Rock), I bet that raises your eye brows.
So, it’s now time to book your flights to Yulara, Ayers Rock and witness the incredible Field of Light by Bruce Munro. If there’s ever been a time to visit our iconic monolith, it’s now. This part of Australia is really unique, unusual and a one of a kind experience and up until end of March 2017, you can witness the marvellous creativity that is the Field of Light.
This is a project dreamed up by internationally acclaimed UK artist, Bruce Munro, whilst he was living in Australia from 1984 – 1992 and so, many years later, his dream is a reality, a 50,000 field of light reality to be exact. Munro was so enraptured by the Australian landscape that he hopes this installation will now inspire everyone to visit an area sculptured by landscape, culture and the environment.
Tonight, as I wandered along the dimly lit paths, I can feel the inspiring magnitude of the vast night sky, lit up by the Milky Way and a zillion stars that you’ll never see in the city, wash over me as darkness falls casting what I can see of Uluru into a silhouette before the monolith disappeared into the night. I looked at the slender fragile stems crowned with frosted glass spheres bloom throughout my experience. The lights changed colour before my eyes, the optical fibres laying along the ground entwining into each other, almost messed with my mind – tentacle in appearance but somehow making the art installation even more fascinating to the eye. You can lose yourself in the magic that is created here and thankfully it’s not a rushed experience, I had plenty of time to walk around at my own leisure and there is an option of a few buses to take me back to my hotel.
You can choose a sunrise experience or a general field of light experience, the earlier requires an obviously very early start to wander through the field in darkness and then watch from the top of a sand dune as sunrise takes the colours and turns them into a field of white coloured daisies whilst you drink hot drink and munch on a biscuit or six – and the later you self guide yourself through the field after dark and enjoy the lights with the multitude of stars above.
Some fun facts;
– the installation took over 2,000 hours to design and build in the UK and,
– A further 3,900 hours to recreate on site.
– It took 5 weeks to install on site,
– There are 30,000 individual components,
– There are over 380kms of optical fibre,
– It’s as big as 7 football fields,
– The area covers 49,000 square metres,
– Qantas is responsible for transporting all items from the UK to Uluru,
– The installation weighs 15 tonne,
– Its the largest iteration of field of light to date,
– This is Munro’s first solar powered installation,
– All materials are re-usable and will be recycled for use in other future installations.
Munro acknowledge the Anangu people, the traditional owners of the land and pays respect to Anangu elders past and present. Munro states that we are all very privileged to be allowed to share this land and experience if for ourselves.
Field of Light, Uluru, Bruce Munro 2016
Photo by: Mark Pickthall
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