UK – Lighting designer James Bawn has employed the Clay Paky Supersharpy to play an instrumental role in a range of recent architectural projects, including projecting light over vast distances from the iconic Victoria Tower in Huddersfield and a special one-night installation at the Halifax Transmitting Tower.
Yorkshire-based roofing company Ploughcroft commissioned Bawn to create a stunning light show at the Halifax tower to celebrate reaching a huge milestone in energy saving for homes, schools and businesses across the county. Named ‘Ploughcroft Eco Northern Lights’, the light show saw the 45.7 (150ft) tower illuminated in vibrant hues and stunning textures.
“I added the Supersharpys, which were sub-rented from Dry Hire Lighting via HSL, to deliver an aerial dynamic to the design,” says Bawn. “The fixtures didn’t disappoint – everyone was very pleased with the end result.”
Bawn knew the Supersharpys would be the ideal tool for this ambitious project following a trial of the fixtures earlier in the year.
Clay Paky’s UK distributor Ambersphere Solutions approached the designer in January to test out the Supersharpy’s searchlight-challenging output whilst simultaneously celebrating the launch of the UNESCO International Year of Light. Bawn decided on the Victoria Tower, located high on Yorkshire’s Castle Hill, as the ideal location for the shoot-out.
“I was very keen to test the Supersharpy as it had the potential to be a game changer for me,” says Bawn. “Having carried 3kw Searchlights to the top of the Victoria tower in the past, using the Supersharpy made life much more simple.”
Bawn’s design saw the Supersharpy’s project a range of gobos into the sky, which could be seen by the Yorkshire public for miles around.
“I was incredibly impressed with the Supersharpy’s enhanced optical design. Being able to get such an incredible output from such a lightweight and portable fixture is fantastic,” continues Bawn. “There was an amazing response from the public and even the local TV news popped over to film the light show!”
The Supersharpy is three times brighter than the highly popular Clay Paky Sharpy, with a 470W, 7,800K lamp. Its advanced optics deliver perfectly focused image projections tens of metres away.
“For all the Supersharpy’s amazing output and features, it consumes relatively little power,” says Bawn. “It’s a fantastic fixture, giving me much greater scope for future architectural projects.”