Artist’s stunning ‘Field of Light’ near Australia’s landmark rock will shine through 2020
In 1889, Impressionist artist Vincent van Gogh captured his version of the night sky, “The Starry Night,” with oil paint.
Artist Bruce Munro creates such immersive landscapes with light. His first inspiration to create a field that bloomed at night came to him on his first visit to Uluru in 1992. Now his “Field of Light” at the Australian landmark will shine through 2020.
His artwork finally sprang up in April 2016 in the place that first inspired his “fields.” It opened for a one-year run as a temporary art installation featuring a forest of 50,000 solar-powered lights with the sandstone landmark as a backdrop.
The display is located about six miles from Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock, in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park in the country’s Northern Territory.
The solar installation, which includes acrylic stems, fiber optic cables and glass bulbs, proved so hardy that it was quickly extended for an additional year. Now it has drawn so many visitors, more than 200,000 so far, that its run is scheduled to last through Dec. 31, 2020.
Before the installation opened, Munro said that light intrigued him as a medium. ”There’s something poetic about it. It goes on and off, and this skin of luminescence allows us to see the world around us – a mysterious energy – one thing you can’t grasp.”
“The extraordinary aspect of ‘Field of Light’ is that an experience which in itself is so powerful it has worked in well with the destination itself,” said Ray Stone, an executive general manager at Voyages Indigenous Tourism Australia, who was instrumental in bringing Munro’s Field to Uluru, in an email. “In fact the [‘Field of Light’] appeal, particularly for many younger people, has often opened the door to Uluru and its inherent spirituality.”
The local Anangu tribe have named it Tili Wiru Tjuta Nyakutjaku or “looking at lots of beautiful lights” in Pitjantjatjara, the local language.
A variety of tours are available with prices starting at approximately $31 U.S. ($39 Australian) for adults. Tickets include transportation from area hotels too. Accommodations at Ayers Rock Resort, where the sculpture is located, range from luxury to camping.
The Night at the Field of Light tour option includes a three-course dinner for about $196 for adults ($245 Australian). For a night tour that includes a camel ride, it costs $299 ($375 Australian), and dinner plus a helicopter flight costs about $491 ($615 Australian).
Info: “Field of Light”
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