Night of Heritage Lighting, UK

Organised by the Society of Light & Lighting the initiative celebrated the talents of its members and promoted UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Sites included the Tower of London, Giants Causeway, Liverpool Maritime, Ruins of Fountains Abbey, Pontcysyllte Aqueduct & Canal, Ironbridge Gorge, Blaenavon Industrial Landscape, Blenheim Palace and Old & New Towns of Edinburgh – with Michael Grubb Studio working on Durdle Door, located along the Jurassic Coast, Dorset.

With no rehearsal in advance and completely reliant on the weather, we also required coast guard approval.

To our surprise over 3,000 people descended on the site to watch us illuminate the iconic landmark.

We also spent the day with the BBC ONE SHOW who filmed the entire process. The final edit was broadcast on 2nd October 2015.

The original concept was to create a scene that was reminiscent of an impressionist painting. This was by placing a person in a rowing boat under the iconic arch.

The intention was to use a variety of lighting tricks, from a boat, to fill the arch with reflected light. This would create an intimate but very powerful image.

However, the design changed once over 3,000 people arrived at the site.

With such a large crowd and the BBC cameras we revised our thinking and provided a huge light show, using many techniques, tricks and technology. The final result was an awe inspiring 15-minute experience that captured the hearts of everyone who was part of the evening.

A one-off project Michael Grubb Studio will never forget.

Liz Peck, President of the Society of Light and Lighting stated, “I am absolutely overwhelmed with what we achieved.”

“The Night of Heritage Light was a great example of the whole industry coming together to bring the magic of light and lighting to the world.”