Light Magic In Abu Dhabi
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By Nicole Rae @simmerandshoot · On December 30, 2011
Yesterday, we posted a piece about the amazing light painting of Brian Matthew Hart. If you thought that was impressive, you’re going to love this. According to Video Mapping Blog, video projection mapping is “an exciting new projection technique that can turn almost any surface into a dynamic video display. Specialized software is used to warp and mask the projected image to make it fit perfectly on irregularly shaped screens. When done right, the end result is a dynamic projection installation that transcends ordinary video projection.” Uh, yeah. Translation: “it looks awesome”. To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the United Arab Emirates National Day, Obscura Digital put together this incredible light display using video projection mapping onto the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi. They used forty-four projectors to cover the 600 x 351 foot high surface area of the mosque, which includes the façade, four minarets and twelve domes. Using beautiful floral and intricate geometric designs, which are echoed in the mosque’s architecture and are also symbols of the rich history of Abu Dhabi, Obscura Digital has created something absolutely amazing. You need to watch the video below (full screen, if you can) to get the full effect.
[via design boom]
Obscura Digital- Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Projectionmapping
This one is making the rounds in the blogosphere pretty rapidly. In fact, anything Obscura Digitaldoes has that effect. Their work is outstanding and this one proves no different. Once again they turned to Derivative’s Touchdesigner to handle the complexity. From Derivative’s blog: 49 projectors were used to project on a total surface measuring 19,474 square meters which included 4 minarets and 12 domes necessitating “detailed accuracy of 3-D mapping and content quality on incredibly complex geometry of flat walls with intricate hand carved details and arcades with rows of columns.” Interactive developer and artist Mary Franck who worked on the project for the duration had this to say: “It was certainly a dream projection-mapping job: incredible architecture, all white marble, completely artistic and cultural content. It was absolutely an honor to be a part of it. We pulled it all altogether in record time. We have done projects of huge scale (the Coke building) and architectural complexity (Sydney Opera House) before, but this building is both exceptionally large and exceptionally complex. We were able to draw in the best methods from those jobs to make a TouchDesigner calibration and playback system for 20 channels of mapped video.
44 projectors on the mosque (24 x 20K lumens + 20 18K lumens) = 840,000 lumens
5 projectors on the fort (5 x 20K lumens) = 100,000 lumens
940,000 lumens total
49 projectors x 3.2kW x 60 hours = 9,400kW total show (Mosque and Fort)
5 projectors on the fort (5 x 20K lumens) = 100,000 lumens
940,000 lumens total
49 projectors x 3.2kW x 60 hours = 9,400kW total show (Mosque and Fort)
Obscura Digital (besides being the coolest place to work and making the coolest billiards table EVER) details the following:
“UAE National Day Celebration- A Mesmerizing Performance Of Cultural And Historical Significance”
In tribute to the United Arab Emirates 40th Anniversary, Obscura Digital has been commissioned to create a first ever series of elaborate projections that illuminate two landmarks of national identity – the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi and the historic Al Jahili Fort – in the unique oasis city of Al Ain.
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Illuminations highlight many of the unique details inside the largest mosque in the country. The projections highlight the geometry throughout the mosque with patterns that shift with symmetry and elegant spare pentagonal forms. A series of frames highlight the detail of the date palm fronds, homage to one of the symbols of the UAE found throughout the mosque. The show includes the unifying spirit of Sheikh Zayed, his passion for the environment through the many beautiful botanical flowers found throughout the mosque, all a part of the vision of the founding father to invite artists of all cultures around the world to design for this spectacular showcase of architecture. Flowers of stone, architectural detailing and lighting spectacles along with colorful organic vines scale the 4 minarets (170m/350ft high) on the four corners of the courtyard. Projections include, the Qibla Wall mirrored after the central panel of the main prayer hall illuminating the 99 attributes of Allah in traditional kufi calligraphy. In addition, an interpretation of the Mirab next to the wall, depicted by rotating golden domes. There are optical illusions, which alter the architecture of the mosque as glass, highlighting geometry, shadows or glass mosaics shimmering under a blue sky. To end the show, a series of celestial moments with the cycles of the moon, which the Islamic calendar is based on as well as the stars twinkling in the night. The moon rises over the mosque as the illuminations come to an end. The earth begins rotating over the entrance to the Grand Mosque, representing the vision Sheikh Zayed had for his people, their heritage and all of humanity.
“UAE National Day Celebration- A Mesmerizing Performance Of Cultural And Historical Significance”
In tribute to the United Arab Emirates 40th Anniversary, Obscura Digital has been commissioned to create a first ever series of elaborate projections that illuminate two landmarks of national identity – the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi and the historic Al Jahili Fort – in the unique oasis city of Al Ain.
The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Illuminations highlight many of the unique details inside the largest mosque in the country. The projections highlight the geometry throughout the mosque with patterns that shift with symmetry and elegant spare pentagonal forms. A series of frames highlight the detail of the date palm fronds, homage to one of the symbols of the UAE found throughout the mosque. The show includes the unifying spirit of Sheikh Zayed, his passion for the environment through the many beautiful botanical flowers found throughout the mosque, all a part of the vision of the founding father to invite artists of all cultures around the world to design for this spectacular showcase of architecture. Flowers of stone, architectural detailing and lighting spectacles along with colorful organic vines scale the 4 minarets (170m/350ft high) on the four corners of the courtyard. Projections include, the Qibla Wall mirrored after the central panel of the main prayer hall illuminating the 99 attributes of Allah in traditional kufi calligraphy. In addition, an interpretation of the Mirab next to the wall, depicted by rotating golden domes. There are optical illusions, which alter the architecture of the mosque as glass, highlighting geometry, shadows or glass mosaics shimmering under a blue sky. To end the show, a series of celestial moments with the cycles of the moon, which the Islamic calendar is based on as well as the stars twinkling in the night. The moon rises over the mosque as the illuminations come to an end. The earth begins rotating over the entrance to the Grand Mosque, representing the vision Sheikh Zayed had for his people, their heritage and all of humanity.
all imagery courtesy Obscura Digital
The Jahili Fort in Al Ain
This historical show opens with a powerful symbol of pride and strength: the Falcon swooping across the vast dunes of the nation moving into a visual representation of the journey of the UAE through historical images. A spectacular montage of light reveals a lifelike underwater scene, which seamlessly transitions into a beautiful night sky of the Arabian Gulf representing the significance of the early pearl trade. The early life of Sheikh Zayed is also illustrated in artistic Bedouin and falconry scenes, followed by the navigational devices and night skies, caravans of camels and negotiations of historic significance. The sand dunes transition to reveal daytime at the Fort like curtains opening onto a desert oasis scene. Here we see the aflaj – irrigation system, which consisted of underground tunnels that channeled water from the aquifers to the oases. This water enabled for date palms to be planted, gardens to flourish and farms to develop, encouraging the settlement in the area.
The show concludes with a quote of Sheikh Zayed of peace and unity: the tribes of the UAE coming together, the founding fathers, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan and current leaders of the nation. With the backdrop of history, we see the flag waving in the wind in star filled night sky over Al Ain.”
Technorati Tags: architainment, digital media, High Res, large format projection, Obscura Digital, projection mapping, videomapping
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