Can You Hear It Ticking?

DUBAI, UAE

Rolex tower undoubtedly stands out of the fence of tall buildings populated Dubai's Sheikh Zayed Road. Not only its ruled geometry but effect on a daylight and moonlit landscape that impress.
Pass it at noon, and the zenith Sun twinkles you across the sequence of opaque and transparent glass panels. Stop by after sunset and hundreds of sparkles flow down a colossal coal.

Brilliantly engineered and performed, LED strips hidden in the panels of glass flash controlled by DMX protocol, as if connected to a meticulous watch mechanism. And it is the noise of the Sheikh Zayed, otherwise you would hear it ticking.

Slow Dancing in a Burning Room

Having spent seven long years in a classical choreography school, I appreciate the intricacies of the body language and the ways to either enhance or to hide the emotions conveyed by it. The right atmosphere is always a key to creating the feeling of catharsis when watching a dance...

...and Wade Robson's modern interpretation of John Mayer' song is a perfect proof. Beautiful - with the lighting set up of two projectors installed on a wall opposite the mirror, casting shadowy intimate and dramatic light and accentuating the body talk. Sensuous, verrrry!

Moving in the darkness

A TUNNEL

Can you count how often you are in a complete darkness? The complete darkness derives us of certain sensations or skills that we obtain during our light experiences through years. A small proof of this: tunnels of one of the Dubai aqua-parks. Your brain sends no signals of whether it is going to be right or left turn, whether there are any obstacles on your way. Information is perceived this very moment of action incapable of any predictions. Navigating in light we 'plan' the route through the vision, darkness leaves us with the only question: what's next?

To cut it short: light operates our lives, darkness brings a pinch of fun

Electrrrrric

JACK JOHNSON'S ALBUM Sleep Through The Static was made with 100% solar energy: all the songs were recorded onto analogue tape machines powered by the sun in Hawaii and Los Angeles.

That's how the music (acoustic songs performed by a surfer singer who gets inspired by the ocean waves and open skies) seamlessly blends with the light... and you go on whistling his tunes and feeling the sun on your skin and thinking of how pleasures can sometimes be guilt-free and environmentally conscious.

Dance Dance Dance

DUBAI FOUNTAINS, Dubai, UAE

Unsurpassed: 275m long (the size of two football fields), water nozzles shoot water sprays to heights of over 150m (equivalent of a 50-storeyed building), 6600 lights and 50 coloured projectors provide the full spectrum of colour with a total output of 1,5 million lumen. These are the "dry" facts.

Unforgettable: we were trying to film it several times but would forget to press the record button... How can water and light create such plasticity and convey complex Arabic choreography? For the real thing, go Dubai Burj Khalifa. For our a-la b&w comic book Marvel-style video, click on play.

SWITCHitON

SWITCH RESTAURANT, Dubai, UAE

The fav dining out place of a lighting geek should give as much emotional food as... oh what was on the menu?

Karim Rashid's Switch Restaurant and Lounge in Dubai Mall lives up to its name: it is the embodiment of transformation. The sand-dune-shaped walls with continuous colour changing, play on light and shadow, striking black ribbon of the ceiling with Arabic ornamental script, lit up fluid floor, lighting wall decor... it's all about illusions, it's all about impressions, it's all about light.

PS. And you eventually forget your mojito is non-alcoholic :)

LUXurious Knowledge

LUXIPEDIA HOME PAGE, Fagerhult Lighting Academy

Light has always been a source of inspiration for different visual arts like painting, photography and cinema, it has brought up brilliant metaphors used in poetry and music but in all its creative spectrum there's a whole scientific field lying underneath.

To better describe the multiplicity of light and uncover the latest developments in lighting, Fagerhult Lighting Academy have launched Luxipedia, an interactive encyclopedia with a clear navigation and articles that shed light to a broad range of topics. A handy instrument that we are using!