Echelon

Echelon (2020) by Danish digital art group Vertigo is an interactive audio-visual installation cited at the foot of London’s Centre Point, in the newly opened St Giles Square. The artwork was curated by Futurecity for Almacantar, the development company behind the rejuvenation of the iconic brutalist building.

Echelon is an urban forest that consists of 36 LED bars, forming a 12-metre equilateral triangle that lights up St Giles Square. A total of 27,000 luminous LED points flash spectacularly in sync with an accompanying soundscape spanning from brief notes to soft flowing sound images. Echelon invites visitors to come together and transform the square into a luminous performative space. The installation rises from its dormant state whenever movement is detected, getting brighter and more active with the flow of people. The awakening is triggered by three radars, symmetrically placed around the light installation. The audience is encouraged to move around and inside the piece in order to get a full experience of the work.

Echelon is the first interactive work to be installed as part of Centre Point’s activation programme; it follows the siting of Whippet Good by Delve Architects and City Blocks by Astrain Studio, two award-winning designs originally commissioned for the London Festival of Architecture, and curated by Futurecity for the square in 2019.

• Press Release
• Artist Bio