OPTICA: the best fusion of food, entertainment and art for Vivid Sydney
Sydney’s premier dining and entertainment precinct, Cockle Bay Wharf, is offering a unique experience for visitors during Vivid Sydney this year. Not only will it boast unmatched views of Vivid Aquatique on Cockle Bay, Cockle Bay Wharf will also host a Vivid Live event at HOME Nightclub, as well as a major lighting installation, entitled OPTICA.
OPTICA is a spectacular and contemporary activation involving a dramatic exhibition of light, movement and colour combining eight specially curated installations.
Curated by multidisciplinary agency Wiltshire + Dimas, OPTICA has been commissioned from leading firm McDermott Baxter, which comprises husband and wife team Ruth McDermott and Ben Baxter.
From installations featuring clouds of bats swooping overhead and golden moths drawn hypnotically to a flame, to crystallised spider webs and coloured light dancing off perforated metal clouds, the OPTICA pieces are enchanting displays, inspired by interactions with nature, light and minerals.
McDermott says of the stimulus behind one particular piece in OPTICA called Cumulus, “In the back of our mind is the increasingly unsettled weather around the world. We programmed the colours trying to create a cloud which celebrated all the different light during the day.”
The eight major lighting installations and associated exhibitions will be placed in both indoor venues and outdoor public spaces around Cockle Bay Wharf. These locations include some of Cockle Bay Wharf’s hotspots, including the facade of HOME Nightclub, Café del Mar (the first and only of the international licensed venue in Australia), Chinta Ria (owned by legendary restaurateur, Simon Goh), Baia the Italian, the Tokio Hotel, and Blackbird Cafe, as well as Town Square and the Northern Atrium.
Cockle Bay Wharf offers an impeccable vantage point of the best that Vivid Sydney 2014 has to offer, not the least of which is Vivid Aquatique on Cockle Bay. The spectacular light show, which takes place on the water of Sydney’s iconic harbour, has been created by French company, Aquatique Show International, unrivalled experts in water shows and aquatic effects.
Vivid Aquatique will feature a magic wall of light and water created by computer controlled dancing water jets, specialised sculptural fountains inspired by Louis XIV’s ‘Water Garden’ at Versailles, four giant water screens, large-format video projections, four high-powered full colour lasers and, for some shows, marine fireworks.
Part of Vivid Live this year will be a unique indoor dance event held at HOME Nightclub on the Queen’s Birthday Holiday eve, Sunday the 8th of June. The night, which is presented by HOLEANDCORNER, will feature such acclaimed electronic dance acts as Hot Chip (playing a DJ set), Matthew Dear, Henry Saiz and more. HOME Nightclub will be transformed into a unique party space with meticulously prepared immersive décor, amazing lighting installations and the finest sound systems to provide an extraordinarily visceral experience.
Catherine Montgomery, Retail Manager of Cockle Bay Wharf, is thrilled about the offerings that the precinct will play host to during Vivid, “I can’t wait for our visitors to Cockle Bay Wharf to experience such a wide range of innovative works of art. The stunning light, movement, and colour of OPTICA, the dazzling play between water and light that is Vivid Aquatique and HOLEANDCORNER’s wild dance party at HOME Nightclub all cement Cockle Bay Wharf as the place to be during Vivid Sydney.”