Canary Wharf is known for its Winter Lights Festival but often has a Summer Lights Festival that celebrates the beauty of natural light, and the long summer days.
On a beautiful sunny morning, I made a tour of some of the outdoor installations, there are 11 new installations, as well as 6 permanent pieces, around Canary Wharf for visitors to discover, plus a exhibition of hand-blown glass in the Lobby of One Canada Square.
Pointillist Bird by Yoni Alter, Wren Landing
Yoni Alter has taken inspiration from the pointillist movement of the 1880s characterised by the painting technique of applying small dots of paint to build up the whole picture. Here, 98 colourful translucent discs are suspended in mid-air to form a 3-meter-wide magnificent pointillist bird.
Helix by Calidos, Cabot Square
Helix is a conceptual representation of the DNA chain, the basic structure of human life. The structure works with the natural elements: wind gently rotates the structure, whilst sunlight catches and highlights the multi-coloured, reflective metal.
Love Birds by Atelier Sisu, Jubilee Park
Love Birds is an immersive and naturally kinetic installation. Gliding above the audience, the colourful birds flutter in the wind, catching the sunlight and casting shadows on the ground.
Lights on Data by Fisheye, Reuters Plaza
Have a seat and take a look at how this solar experiment unravels its secrets. As visitors enjoy this conceptual piece of city furniture, the sun creates an alluring shadow play filled with colour, reflection and even data.
Planet @ Risk by Mark Swysen, Water Street
A welded construction in aluminium suggests the 8 meridians and the Arctic and Antarctic polar circles of a huge see-through globe. On a sunny day the installation will appear to radiate through the reflection of sunlight in the central cylindrical mirrors.
Infinity and Beyond by Martin Richman & Emma Kate Matthews, Harbour Quay Gardens
Infinity and Beyond offers a layered and visually ambiguous experience of Canary Wharf’s Harbour Quay Gardens, presenting infinite reflections of adjacent buildings and multi-image patterns of the surroundings within each structure. Much like a kaleidoscope, each module is lined with reflective mirror, with holes cut in the surface.
This installation consists of six free-standing triangular units. They stand at three different heights to accommodate a wide range of visitors, including children, adults, pushchairs, and wheelchair users.
Expanded Landscapes by Nathaniel Rackowe, Harbord Square Gardens
Expanded Landscapes echoes and unpicks the built environment of Canary Wharf. Surface, colour, transparency, and form come together to act as an expansive counterpoint to the surrounding architecture.
Gleamhhh by OGE Design Group, Cubitt Steps
The Long and Winding Road by Ottotto, Harbour Quay Gardens
Made from corrugated drainpipes on a steel structure, this installation is a great example of the repurposing of materials, and the transformation of the functional into the beautiful.
The installation encourages people to walk within the and be bathed in the yellow light streaming through the pipes.
O.T. 1131 by Stefan Reiss, Level -1, Crossrail Place
Love IRL by Stuart Langley, Adams Plaza
Ebb & Flow by Louis Thompson, Lobby, One Canada Square
Ocean Rise by Aphra Shemza, Canary Riverside
Ocean Rise is a mixed reality sculpture that highlights the rise in sea levels due to global warming. The sculpture is made from recycled materials that emulate a wave creating a connection between the city and the ocean.
Shine Your Colours by Tine Bech, Canary Riverside
Captivated by Colour by Camille Walala, Adams Plaza Bridge
Tear by Richard Hudson, Jubilee Plaza
Kaleidoscopic Prisms by Fiona Grady, Jubilee Pavilion
The Knot by Richard Hudson, Water Street
An Hour of Glass By Colin Priest, throughout Canary Wharf
There is always plenty going on in Canary Wharf over the summer so why not try to spot in installations and the rather colourful steps.
Isle of Dogs Life 