Traffic light tree
Traffic Light Tree (Ampelbaum) is the name of a light sculpture by the French sculptor Pierre Vivant (* 1952). The installation was set up in 1998 on a roundabout (Heron Quay Bank, Marsh Wall and Westferry Road) in the middle of the Canary Wharf office complex in the Tower Hamlets district of London . At the end of 2013, the sculpture was moved to the roundabout on Trafalgar Way (entrance to Billingsgate Fish Market).
description
The eight meter high, green painted steel sculpture in the form of a branching tree consists of 75 computer-controlled traffic lights with the three signal colors green, yellow and red, as well as pedestrian lights. The installation , which was commissioned by the London Public Art Commissions Agency between 1995 and 1998, replaced one of three plane trees that had died there, presumably due to traffic pollution. The sculpture is not only intended to imitate a tree structure, but also “to reflect the energy of the developing Canary Wharf region.” Originally, the lights were supposed to be controlled by the exchange rates of the London Stock Exchange , but the implementation proved too expensive.
The artist about his sculpture:
"The sculpture imitates the natural landscape of the adjacent London Plane Trees, while the changing pattern of the lights reveals and reflects the never ending rhythm of the surrounding domestic, financial and commercial activities."
"The sculpture mimics the natural landscape of the neighboring London plane trees, while the changing lights reflect the never-ending rhythm of the surrounding domestic, financial and commercial activities."
Although the alleged traffic light system irritates some road users, the property quickly became a tourist attraction. In a survey by the British insurance company Saga Group on “the best and worst roundabouts in the country”, the Traffic Light Tree was clearly one of the “best looking” favorites among motorists.
Web links
- Traffic Light Tree - citynoise.org (English)
- Grand Illusions: Traffic Light Tree (English)
- Sculpture club (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ Helen Sumpter: Sculpture club. Time Out London, April 10, 2006, accessed April 9, 2011 .
- ↑ Traffic Light Tree. (No longer available online.) Grand Illusions, archived from the original on May 20, 2011 ; Retrieved April 9, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ The Traffic Light Tree, Pierre Vivant 1998. (No longer available online.) Citynoise.org, archived from the original on April 18, 2010 ; Retrieved April 9, 2011 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Brits vote on the best and worst roundabouts. easier.com, December 20, 2005, accessed April 9, 2011 .
Coordinates: 51 ° 30 ′ 24.5 ″ N , 0 ° 0 ′ 38 ″ W.