Lighting in Design November December 2017

Photo credit: MomentFactory

giant, it is 600 m long and contains 15 650 tonnes of steel, the Eiffel Tower by comparison is 300 m in height and contains 7300 tonnes of steel. Over 250 participants from all pro- fessional backgrounds worked on the bridge’s lighting for more than two years (creatives, engineers, lighting designers, project managers, programmers, rope access technicians, steelworkers, electri- cians, traffic officers, and more). Sensors

installed on the bridge track vehicle, bicycle and pedestrian traffic, as well as wind speed, wind direction and precipitation levels. Big data collected from Montreal through 53 data points and classed into 11 categories is con- solidated into each hourly show and up to 500 light points, representing the most recent and most-liked tweets, circulate simultaneously on the bridge’s skin. Two thousand eight hundred and seven (2 807) lights, a combination of projectors and tube lighting, illuminate the steel superstruc- ture to reflect the activity of the city. The estimated minimum lifespan of the en- ergy efficient LED lighting technology is 50 000 hours;10.4 km of cabling was required to illuminate the bridge (for data transfer and electrical power)

named, the colours change gently with the sea- sons, the light subtly evokes the passage of time as an enduring artistic expression that reflects its surrounding ecosystem. Lighting is directed to four areas of the bridge’s steel superstructure: piers; turrets; interior core or ‘heart’; and exterior facade or ‘skin’. A soft light- ing is directed inwards towards the ‘heart’ of the structure, minimising light loss and distractions to vehicles. The dynamic lighting of the exterior ‘skin’ is directed outwards towards the surround- ing metropolis Facts about the installation: The Jacques Cartier Bridge has been a Mon- treal icon for close on a century. A true iron

Jacques Cartier Bridge interactive illumination (render). Midnight show.The bridge bursts into full life to signify the changing of the day. With a new day comes a new colour so the bridge cycles through all 365 colours of the chromatic calendar searching for its new identity. It explores wave after wave of colour until finally, the bridge has its new look for a new day. Photo credit: Moment Factory.

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LiD NOV/DEC 2017