ArtArtArt

An artist has fashioned a stunning tunnel of light in an historic cathedral using 16,000 bottles of water. Bruce Munro, 51, a light installation artist, has used the cloisters at Salisbury Cathedral for his creation, called Water-Towers. He took 16,000 two-litre plastic bottles, built them into 69 towers, filled them with water and threaded through them a long, fibre-optic cable of constantly changing colour. Each of the 69 towers is made out of 216 bottles, containing 30 tons of water. The result is a huge maze of refracting light, which is viewed while listening to music by the cathedral choir played over hidden speakers.

Munro said: “I developed the first concepts for Water-Towers in 2004, and was really inspired by a beautiful book on synesthesia I read in my twenties. It’s that magical sensory blend where people are able to ‘see’ sound as colour. When viewed from the other side of the cloisters the stone arches in silhouette will become animated with colour, like stained glass windows. In a sense I feel I am paying homage to all those wonderful artisans who built the cathedral.

“As a young chorister, I remember being captivated by sunlight splashing colours on to the white-washed walls of our school chapel. I hope that Water-Towers at Salisbury will evoke something of the awe I felt by such simple but dramatic lighting effects.