Sculptures.org.nz

Original image by Wellington City Council

Tower of Light

Artist	Andrew Drummond
Year	2005
Location	On the waterfront walkway, next to the Cobham Drive and Troy Street roundabout, Evans Bay.
Tour directions	From Akau Tangi follow the path along the coast and you will find the Tower of Light beside the path.

Seeing Red?

The regular gusts that pound Wellington, usually peak at over 140 km/h (76 knots), which is comparable to a major hurricane - the absolute highest available category for wind speed.

Sculpture background

"Tower of Light is a machine that uses the wind speed and converts that into light using very simple technology. The rotor at the top of the tower spins in accordance to the wind speed. This rotational speed is read via a controller, which then switches on neon rings in accordance to the speed of the rotor, which is determined by the wind speed.

The lighter the wind speed the fewer number of rings are lit and as the wind speed increases the more neon rings are lit. I have used colour as a measuring element and so the sequence goes from green at the bottom through the spectrum to red at the top. As a result, the viewer is able to read wind speed through colour, a method for them to re-sense their environment.

Tower of Light then becomes a work that has a strong social presence. It not only has a visual role, but has a social role and as a result will integrate its place into the local environment."

Andrew Drummond - January 2005