Birmingham Hippodrome have shared more information about the stunning surprise light installation that has shone over areas of Birmingham and the Black Country. Global Rainbow – an art installation by international artist Yvette Mattern - was beamed Northwest from the city’s iconic Rotunda building this evening, marking a message of hope and peace for the New Year.
Graham Callister, Director of Festivals at Birmingham Hippodrome commented: “We are delighted to present this monumental light installation by visual artist Yvette Mattern over the New Year Period. After such a challenging 2020, we hope that those who have been able to experience Global Rainbow have been inspired to take a moment to pause and reflect and look toward 2021 with hope and peace.
“It is hugely important people do not travel to see this installation – the joy of this special visual artwork is that it can be seen safely from the homes of those living nearby by simply looking to the sky.” Graham added: “We would like to thank Arts Council England, the Global Streets consortia and Bullring & Grand Central for helping to make this wonderful installation possible.”
Global Rainbow is an ongoing public artwork by Visual Artist Yvette Mattern. The artwork was created in 2009 to be a visual translation of hope and light and has since been displayed across the world in cities including New York City (USA), Sao Paulo (Brazil) and Kobe (Japan). It beams seven rays of laser light (Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet) representing the colour spectrum of a natural rainbow and will be shone northwest out the city over the New Year period. The rainbow beams can reach up to 10 miles on a clear night, and this evening could be seen in Birmingham City Centre, the Jewellery Quarter and areas of the Black Country.
Yvette said: “I was thrilled to work with the Hippodrome Festivals team to bring a unique, covid-safe, visual art installation to the West Midlands. I hope those in Birmingham and the Black Country who saw Global Rainbow enjoyed the experience and will take comfort from positivity it represents as we head into 2021.”
Each year, the Birmingham Hippodrome Festivals team produce a range of exciting events including the annual B-SIDE Hip-Hop Festival and Birmingham’s Chinese New Year in Birmingham celebrations, as part of the venue’s mission to enrich the cultural life of the region.
Fiona Allan, Artistic Director and Chief Executive of Birmingham Hippodrome added: “As a leading producer of festivals in the region, we have worked incredibly hard this year to innovate and adapt our programme in order to safely deliver exciting cultural experiences. Global Rainbow offered us the opportunity to produce a beautiful, poignant and symbolic moment for the region as we all look towards a brighter 2021.”
Global Rainbow was presented by Birmingham Hippodrome as part of Global Streets, a national project funded through Arts Council England National Lottery Project Grants.