Gravitational Grid
Vivid Sydney 2022
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Earth Deities
Vivid Sydney 2022
A monumental multi-limbed contemporary sculpture by day, dramatic light show by night
Public Art
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Project details
Artist – Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran
Lighting design and production design – Mark Dyson, Darkhouse Design
Sound – Rachel Dease
Engineering – Event Engineering
Artist’s assistants – Hugh Black, Zenani Graddon, Sebastian Nocelli, Sebastian Conti, Orson Heidrich
Technicians –Alex McCoy, Garrick Palmer
Photography – Mark Pokorny
Presentation partner/curatorial – Creative Road
Artist’s representative galleries – Sullivan + Strumpf | Sydney, Jhaveri Contemporary | Mumbai -
Background
Earth Deities is a large-scale sculptural form that links artist Ramesh Nithiyendran’s cultural background to contemporary culture.
Located on Hickson Road Reserve, the installation is positioned between famous Sydney landmarks – the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge, the expressive grin of Luna Park’s entrance – and reflects upon Sydney as a global, multicultural city with plural histories.
The 8m tall ‘multi-limbed avatar’ provides a dramatic light show for Vivid Sydney 2022. The avatar, draped and surrounded by a range of production style lighting providing for a spectacular night time transformation.
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Process
Working alongside renowned artist Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran, Darkhouse lighting designer Mark Dyson, and Zoe Robinson-Kennedy, Curator, Creative Road – Tilt’s role was to deliver the concept through detailed design, and fabrication, installation, and commissioning.
Tilt visually translated the artist’s ceramic mock-up and supporting watercolour sketches into 3D CAD.
To provide the artist with a large-scale canvas to paint and adorn, the sculptural form was achieved through the cladding of hard-coated foam over a structural steel frame.
The opportunities for integration of speakers, lighting and smoke machines was also considered throughout the detailed design process. -
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The solution
The 8m tall part-idol, part-monster, part-hero gestures to a range of global sources that link the artists cultural background to contemporary culture at large. Lighting design by Darkhouse animates this vision by night.
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Artist – Ramesh Mario Nithiyendran
“The work extends core processes of my art practice – especially the transfiguration of earth, fire and water. However, I’ve considered electricity as another elemental force to anchor this guardian in the urban landscape. ”
Lighting design and production design – Mark Dyson – Darkhouse Design
“Expressing Ramesh’s artistic vision in light is always a fun and challenging task. We have custom built a raft of alternative technologies to bring the figure to life and paint it in a range of moods and expressions. The final product reflects a synthesis between Rameh’s statics sculpture and the dynamism and vibrancy of theatrical lighting.”
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