Huge animated light projection set to tell story of Stoke-on-Trent’s centenary and future
Message In A Bottle Kiln is part of Appetite's Light Up Hanley event on 3 and 4 February
A huge light artwork telling the story of Stoke-on-Trent’s centenary and future is set to be projected onto Hanley’s Town Hall as part of a free, family-friendly two-night event.
Message In A Bottle Kiln, created by artists Illuminos, will use animation and sound to bring the past century to life and look forward to the next 100 years. It captures the vision of the city’s future described by young people from Stoke-on-Trent College, Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College and Pinc College.
The projection is part of the Light Up Hanley event, presented by Creative People and Places programme Appetite, which will take place in Albion Square on 3 and 4 February from 5pm to 8pm.
The event, which is part of Appetite’s Light Up Winter series, will also feature a multi-sensory musical sculpture made up of more than 200 illuminated chime bars and a five-metre-high fortune-telling fruit machine, as well as roaming performers.
Artist Rob Vale, of Illuminos, said: “We have worked with young people from Stoke-on-Trent imagining with them what they would place in a bottle kiln to send forwards into the future, and the wonderful transformations that might take place in the process.
“Weaving the young people’s ideas into a vision of the next 100 years of Stoke-on-Trent, the Town Hall will come alive with the power and heat of the kilns, morphing and transforming as spitfires turn to space travel, ceramics merge with silicon, melodies soar and treasures delight.”
The new owner of the Town Hall, Simon Edwards, of ELS Holdings, added: “The Town Hall is an iconic building in the city and it will be great to see it animated in this way. Projects like this show how historic buildings can play an active role in the life of the city today, connecting heritage with creativity and future ambition. We are delighted that the Town Hall is part of this fantastic event.”
The Light Up Winter series will conclude with Newcastle under Light outside the Guildhall on 4 March from 6pm to 9pm. The event will see a projection celebrating local people and places, a forest-inspired installation exploring breath and breathing together, and giant inflatable creatures that respond to hugs and squeezes.
Appetite Interim Director Heather Dowler said: “Our Light Up Winter series is about creating moments of joy, wonder and shared experiences in our communities. Light Up Hanley is a free and welcoming event, and a chance to come together on winter evenings to see familiar places in a completely new light.”
The Light Up Winter events are free to attend with no booking required. Refreshments will be available to purchase. British Sign Language tours will be available at each location and will need pre-booking by contacting askus@appetite.org.uk.
Light Up Winter is funded by the National Lottery through Arts Council England’s Creative People and Places programme, with additional support from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, Stoke-on-Trent City Council, Newcastle-under-Lyme Borough Council, Denise Coates Foundation and Middleport Matters. The series is delivered in partnership with Middleport Matters, Stoke-on-Trent City Centre BID, Newcastle-under-Lyme BID and Stoke Creates.
What's intresting here is how the project flips the usual heritage model. Instead of just projecting history onto a building, they're using the building as a canvas for futures imagined by people who'll actually live them. That forward-looking framing through a historic structure is a smart way to make civic memory feel less like a muesum piece.