Anyone else bothered by huge white construction lights

aris · Post by **aris** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 5:32 pm

Was it just me, or did those huge white lights on that flower piece on the playa completely DESTROY the illusion that the playa so wonderfully gives off at night.

I kept waiting for them to get done with the construction of the piece so we could get our beautiful BRC horizon at night. It wasn't until Friday that I figured out that's the way they were lighting the piece.

Awful. Am I the only one? I wonder if they got feedback about that style of lighting. Yuck.

Post by **Eric** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 6:17 pm

Honestly? I loved the way those flowers glowed at night- we were right on the Esplanade & I loved just looking off at them in the distance.

On my night-time wanderings I didn't even notice them- there were so many lights & sights that they just became part of the over-all visuals to me.

None of this invalidates your experience with them. It's just further proof that, especially on the playa, one persons dream is anothers nightmare.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 7:15 pm

ITYM one man's bile is another man's breakfast.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 7:29 pm

you can put anything in an omelette.

Mosin · Post by **Mosin** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 9:00 pm

To me the lighting looked cool from a distance... up close, not so much. Honestly I thought they were still working on the piece/lighting, since the rental lift/boom they had the lights mounted on looked--at best--like omlette-ready dog shit.

Token · Post by **Token** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 9:18 pm

What fucking flowers?

masho · Post by **masho** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 9:29 pm

Token wrote:What fucking flowers?

lawl token....

Isotopia · Post by **Isotopia** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 9:54 pm

Awful. Am I the only one? I wonder if they got feedback about that style of lighting. Yuck.

Shut

up

you......

....whining,

....fucking......

hippie.

EmilyD · Post by **EmilyD** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 10:14 pm

Actually those work lights helped us find our way back to camp during the dust storm on Friday night. If not for them we may have ended up in Utah.

oneeyeddick · Post by **oneeyeddick** » Fri Sep 17, 2010 10:57 pm

Don't worry, Utah would have thrown you back.

peace · Post by **peace** » Sat Sep 18, 2010 8:20 pm

When I first saw that piece from a distance I thought/hoped they were giant magnets that sucked up bikes when people stopped to look.

oscillator · Post by **oscillator** » Sat Sep 18, 2010 8:26 pm

They are beacons to our alien friends who enjoy getting past gate & perimeter.

Buckaroo_Benzai · Post by **Buckaroo_Benzai** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 8:37 am

I guess I'll be one of the few to say that those lights bothered me, too. I initially thought they were for construction (but then, why would you not just set up during the day?)... only after they were on for a couple days in a row did I realize they were permanent.

It was kinda annoying since they lit up the playa for thousands of feet in every direction (you basically had to go to the trash fence to get away from it). Kinda like if you're trying to look at the stars and someone is shining a flashlight in your eyes. I thought it was very tacky and somewhat disrespectful to all of the subtly lit artwork out there (since you couldn't see it as well, being blinded and all). It would have been better if they lit it from below (pointed up) instead of directing the light all across the playa.

Bob · Post by **Bob** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 9:44 am

You have to dissect these people's art proposals and budgets to even begin to understand the issues. Maybe they planned for a big lampshade and it burned up.

mars · Post by **mars** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 12:24 pm

I agree...the lights were...unfriendly.

I was so glad I had my sunglasses with me the night we walked to the Burn and then so relieved when those lights were finally behind us.

RedHeaven · Post by **RedHeaven** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 7:13 pm

I wasnt there this year but every year there are those white construction lights somewhere. When the man burned early, they were there by the man in the center all week long. They are very unsightly and reality like, but people need them to work on the projects so I just deal with it.

Captain Goddammit · Post by **Captain Goddammit** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 7:35 pm

Shit, I didn't even go this year and those fucking lights shined in my windows so bright I couldn't sleep in Seattle! I had to put on sunscreen and shit.

thirt33n · Post by **thirt33n** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 9:22 pm

i also was not there but i'm sure they would have bothered me. work lights cannot be made into pleasant lights. imo.
a half a mile from my house, the post office security light lights up my whole yard. light pollution. it exists. and the above picture proves it. yes, EXCELLENT from one side but I would only permit this kind of lighting if the installation was right up against the trash fence with the light facing out.

gunsmith · Post by **gunsmith** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 10:04 pm

I didn't see any lights during that dust storm

Tiahaar · Post by **Tiahaar** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 10:25 pm

Pre-event, have at it with the worklights. Get it done so you can turn em off during the event. Barring that, it should go without saying that you want to see the art or the structure or whatever, not usually the direct filaments of bright floodlamps lighting it. Anyone working with architectural lighting knows that. Shroud them, aim them up or aim them down.

One piece I remember years ago was brightly lit but the lamps were shrouded deep inside 55 gal drums angled near vertically (and I think painted flat black inside, like theater spots)...worked awesomely.

rodiponer · Post by **rodiponer** » Sun Sep 19, 2010 11:18 pm

Funny, the lights made me think this project was still under construction, so I never stopped to look at it. Now I wish that I had looked at it more closely.

Maybe the lights they planned to use did not work, so they fell back on the construction lights?

Edited-- added question.

LeChatNoir · Post by **LeChatNoir** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 7:01 am

rodiponer wrote:Funny, the lights made me think this project was still under construction, so I never stopped to look at it. Now I wish that I had looked at it more closely.

That is exactly what I thought as well. I did find them off-putting and wished they could have been pointed more towards the ground than out horizontally. However... once I realized that when you walked by them at some distance away, you could have a lot of fun with the long shadows they cast, I felt a bit better about it. Silly Walks worked well.

Post by **AntiM** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 7:06 am

Obviously not fans of home decorating shows or they'd have known about uplighting!

C.f.M. · Post by **C.f.M.** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 7:13 am

I make it a point not to be bothered by anything at a burn.

I mean...really?

If you think something's going to bother you, stay home.

hnrys69 · Post by **hnrys69** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 2:10 pm

[quote="rodiponer"]

Maybe the lights they planned to use did not work, so they fell back on the construction lights?

Edited-- added question.[/quote]

Correct, they had problems the whole week and thats what they had to use. They were supposed to glow in blue LED's.

mudpuppy000 · Post by **mudpuppy000** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 2:52 pm

LeChatNoir wrote:
rodiponer wrote:Funny, the lights made me think this project was still under construction, so I never stopped to look at it. Now I wish that I had looked at it more closely.
That is exactly what I thought as well. I did find them off-putting and wished they could have been pointed more towards the ground than out horizontally. However... once I realized that when you walked by them at some distance away, you could have a lot of fun with the long shadows they cast, I felt a bit better about it. Silly Walks worked well.

x3, I kept waiting for them to finish construction so I'd go look at it, lol. Sucks that they were having lighting problems.

robrob · Post by **robrob** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 3:17 pm

C.f.M. wrote:I make it a point not to be bothered by anything at a burn.
I mean...really?
If you think something's going to bother you, stay home.

you're not burning right, this is the way you should burn CFM!

FireShaman · Post by **FireShaman** » Mon Sep 20, 2010 3:58 pm

Sigh....

Am I the only one who misses asshole spotlight camp?

willyloafofphora · Post by **willyloafofphora** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 1:07 am

My art was right in the brunt of the spotlight and it kind of messed our shit up because we had glow art that required low lighting and had already had our placement moved from closer to the man due to light concerns. We actually thought about asking them to do something about it but figured they were just using it to finish up the project and then it would go away. By the time we realized that it wasn't going away most of our art was broken so it didn't matter anyway. Sucks they had problems. Bringing stuff to the playa's a bitch. Next year I'm bringing nothing but a megaphone and the clothes on my back.

EspressoDude · Post by **EspressoDude** » Tue Sep 21, 2010 7:29 am

FireShaman wrote:Sigh....

Am I the only one who misses asshole spotlight camp?

That help folks find theirs when they lose them......

Anyone else bothered by huge white construction lights

Anyone else bothered by huge white construction lights

and bright car headlamps suck too