bruce munro: ‘light shower’ at salisbury cathedral

‘light shower’ by bruce munro installed within the salisbury cathedral all photos by mark pickthall

‘light shower’ is UK-based artist bruce munro‘s most recent sculptural work, located within the highest point of the salisbury cathedral.

the installation consists of 2, 000 shimmering points of light / teardrop diffusers, each set at the end of a fiber optic thread, all cascading downwards from the cathedral’s spire crossing. the volume of the piece measures 10m x 10m x 7m, taking over an area which is comparable to the size of a modest house. within the cathedral, which dates back to 1258 and that is 134.7m long and 123m in height at its highest point, ‘light shower’ hovers like a cloud of luminescence.

worm’s eye view

‘within minutes of walking into the magnificent nave of the cathedral I knew what I wanted to create. I firmly believe that a building gives all the clues to what will work best. I hope that what I create will capture the spiritual essence that pervades the space.’ – bruce munro

long view

munro chose the area within the cathedral where the transepts intersect the nave for several reasons: there are excellent structural opportunities to suspend an invisible wire; the central space is midway between congregation and clergy can act as a unifying link to other features of the building; munro hopes that the installation will act as a conduit and encourage both visitors and worshipers to see the building in a ‘new light’ and appreciate the building’s vast spaces.

‘light shower’ will officially be turned on november 29th, 2010 and will remain lit until january 2011.

details

detail

one of bruce munro’s assistants with ‘the cage’ used to arrange the 2, 000 lights

arranging all of the lines of light

arranging the lights

artist bruce munro preparing the lights

work in progress on the ‘light shower’ installation