Access All Areas February 2022 | Page 35

“ Together was conceived during the isolation of lockdown , driven by a desire for communal experience at a time when our loneliness was at its peak .”

FEBRUARY AUGUST | FEATURE the thoughts and expressions of the community , whether it be festival attendees or a city ’ s inhabitants . “ The Together project was conceived during the isolation of lockdown , driven by a desire for communal experience at a time when our loneliness was at its peak ,” says Swan . “ We wanted to design a piece that brought people together and created a place to be able to celebrate the ways in which we , as communities , unite in love against adversity .”

Lucid was in the very early stages of fabricating the elements of Together when Festival Republic MD Melvin Benn made contact and explained that he was looking to create a new late-night dance arena called LS23 to replace the Relentless Stage at Leeds Festival .
The result was a stunning 360 ° dance area able to accommodate up to 20,000 festivalgoers at any one time . Measuring 15m in height and width , Together became a pavilionlike open space in a woodland setting that enabled the free flow of people in and out of the dance arena .
Together went on to be installed at Liverpool Pier Head to mark the 21st anniversary of the club night Chibuku Shake Shake . Branded Dance Together , the installation involved the use of archive music and images from Chibuku ’ s history . Having been a regular at the club , when she was studying music and art in Liverpool in the early 2000s , Swan says the project was particularly rewarding .
Together is currently in Aberdeen , where it will be used at Sprectra , the Aberdeen City Council-run festival of culture that is due to run from 10-13 February .
Swan and Carr state that sustainability is an integral consideration during the design and build of all Lucid ’ s structures , with the team ’ s core focus being on the
Together was the centrepiece of the Leeds Festival LS23 dance arena
potential for reuse and repurpose of component parts .
“ We will not build disposable , single-use structures ,” says Carr . “ Our design methodology is to construct multiple structures
from the same set of reusable components . These component parts are designed and made by us to work in multiple ways from resilient and recyclable materials such as steel . This allows us to create visually exciting new designs without using new materials for each structure and so reducing environmental impact .
“ We have also developed a unique , patented , system of modular steel frames and brackets for attaching creative cladding to Layher scaff . This hard-wearing , reusable system allows us to reuse creative cladding over and over in multiple designs .”
Looking ahead , with the live events market getting back in full swing , Swan says Lucid ’ s focus will be on continuing to develop its portfolio of multi-functional immersive public art installations while also
“ Together was conceived during the isolation of lockdown , driven by a desire for communal experience at a time when our loneliness was at its peak .”
Helen Swan , Lucid Creates
collaborating with festivals and artists to create sustainable stages and spaces for live shows .
She says , “ We are so grateful for the support we ’ ve received for our installations . In 2022 , they are touring far and wide – Futures will be in Australia in August and we are working on an exciting project with a major recording artist for a performance in a spectacular location under the rings of Together . The beauty of our installations is that , like LEGO , they can be taken apart and rebuilt in entirely new ways and so we have endless possibilities to create stages .”
PHOTO : RYAN BETHELL
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