Phillip Lane, a service laneway in Parramatta’s famed ‘Eat Street’ was transformed into a creative public space with art and lighting.
After a successful trial, Phillip Lane received an overwhelmingly positive reaction, generating a sense of community pride, expressing colour and movement, drawing passers-by within the once forgotten laneway.
The NSW Government and Council Member Chris Patfield (Place Manager for the city of Parramatta), invited expressions of interest to create a permanent feature for the laneway.
Four submissions were shared with the public for feedback, an astounding 56% voted for the ‘Burra burawa burring gili’ (eel above countless generations of starlight) by Cundall with Uncle Jim Carrol & Matt Fellingham, representing the area’s First Nation heritage.
Additional funding under the ‘Your High Street’ grant program was launched with manufacturing and construction commencing.
A beautiful concept
Anjana Ravishankar, Lighting Designer for Cundall Sydney, and author of Putting Culture and Story at the Heart of the Place-Making, goes into detail on how ‘Burra burawa burring gili’ was conceived, and the meaning behind the lighting sculpture.
Colour and emotion
From collaboration on past projects, Cundall was certain CoLab Lighting was the perfect lighting supplier, manufacturer and installer for Parramatta’s ‘Eat Street’ project. From plans drawn,
CoLab’s production team commenced fabricating the scales of the eel – 40 individually-coloured, 12mm thick, Polycarbonate sheets were cut to shape and the edges polished. Serving a dual purpose, the scales doubled as part of the visual sculpture as well as a tool to cast bright colours from the sun’s rays onto the building walls and road below.
Shaping light
Fixed to each of the eel’s 40 scales, custom bent stainless-steel extrusion housed the 15-Watt IP67 RGB Neon Flex, outlining the scales with a programmable LED illumination. Motion imaging projectors were used to generate movement on the pathway below, creating a sense of running water.
Boxed brain
Five waterproof stainless-steel custom painted boxes were constructed to house the brains behind the lighting display. A DMX player with world clock functionality and 24VDC 4A*32ch DMX512 decoders were used to manage the lighting system and programmable display.
Light management
The programmable lighting schemes and schedules specific to dates and the City of Parramatta council events were managed onsite via a laptop, with optional remote access programming for future topical events.
The Awards
Since the opening of the newly modernised laneway, the Phillip Lane project has been nominated for four awards and placing in them all:
• Better Future – Sydney Design Award 2023 (Silver)
• Better Future – Australia Design Award 2023 (Silver)
• Mainstreet Australia – Best Main Street Streetscape and Design Award
• IESANZ Award for Excellence 2023 – A contemporary response to the culture of Paramatta while simultaneously acknowledging the spiritual history of the First Nations people.
The success of the Phillip Lane ‘Burra burawa burring gili’ has led to further creative projects proposed to make Phillip Lane a new destination for outdoor weekend dining over the summer months.