3DReid vertical ribbon of lights is selected as one of four designs shortlisted in the first ever competition to redesign of Oxford Street’s world-famous Christmas lights.
Based on the concept of the Northern Lights (Aurora Borealis), the design uses a continuous, linear, colour-shifting light field to create an artificial ‘aurora’ that cascades down the unique shopping street and brings a special feeling of northern-ness to the heart of Christmas London.
The design has two main elements, a ribbon and a star field. The ribbon uses 500,000 fully addressable, three colour LED luminaires to create a never-repeating continuous geometry that curves smoothly around street obstacles such as trees or lamp posts. At each of five ‘gateways’, the ribbon takes a more flamboyant path and its programming changes, providing a strong sense of arrival for visitors.
Charlie Whitaker, Associate Director, explains: “Where traditional Christmas light installations are horizontal, either spanning the street with intermittent banners or shapes, or putting a lid on the street like a ceiling, the main part of our design is a long, vertical ribbon. Because of this geometry, the many rich facades and storefronts of Oxford Street – often themselves illuminated – remain unobstructed and are allowed to make their own contribution.”
In addition to the main ribbon ‘aurora’, the installation has a background ‘star field’ of suspended lights. Much less dense than the ribbon; the star field both contributes to the aurora effect and offers an opportunity to mix in some ‘Christmas eggs’. These consist of a variety of illuminated characters and shapes, some with a Christmas theme, some with a gift theme (by district) and others that are … less expected. Visitors can travel the length of Oxford Street to spot them, inviting exploration of the wider district.
