Spin-to-Win: Vancouver’s Spinning Chandelier
Chandeliers are designed to bring light to dark spaces, but they are also functional symbols of opulence. Vancouver’s most famous chandelier now hangs below the north end of the Granville Street Bridge. A required gift from Westbank, the spinning chandelier illuminates a quiet corridor that Vancouver House developers hope will be bustling in the city’s near future.
The massive kinetic artwork has been labeled by Vancouver’s Mayor, Kennedy Stewart, as “the most important piece of public art in the history of our city.” And while many would call this a reach, the piece is on track to become both a destination landmark and a firm symbol of class distinction.
“Spinning Chandelier” by Rodney Graham
Designed by local artist Rodney Graham, the chandelier is the bi-product of an earlier piece by Graham titled Torqued Chandelier. The first work was a film installation that focused on an elaborate light fixture that was suspended on a wound rope and then released. The current piece, Spinning Chandelier, is a practical magnification of this earlier work.
Weighing approximately 7,500 lb. (the weight of roughly two cars), with a height of 25.5 ft and a width of 14 ft, the modern chandelier is a sight to behold. It is suspended with cables below the Granville Bridge and hangs directly above the intersection of Beach Av and Granville St. The piece lowers and spins three times a day, at 12pm, 4pm and 9pm. During the descent, the spinning chandelier widens and opens like a trolling fishing lure.
The fixture’s stainless steel LED lights are lit from 4pm till 11pm. The light produced glitters and reflects off of 600 polyurethane crystals that dangle and shimmer below the bridge.
Graham’s piece is a modern interpretation of the Venetian crystal fixtures that were first popularized in the 18th Century. The original chandeliers were hung in the staterooms, entranceways and dining halls of the palaces of Russian and European nobility. The glittering light effect was intended to resemble the refraction of light as it passed through precious jewels.
The Lighting of Versaille
Louis XIV of France was a huge fan. The Sun King commissioned 43 dangling crystal chandeliers for his ‘Hall of Mirrors’ in the Palace of Versailles. Louis’s marvels were illuminated by candlelight and were lowered and raised for lightening. Staff would use rope or chain pulleys to facilitate the descent. Graham’s design echoes that movement and adds a theatrical spin.
Hidden from the French taxpayers who funded them, Louis’s lamps were contained inside the palace, surrounded by other elements of opulence. Graham’s work, commissioned by Westbank, flips the script and hangs below a very bourgeois bridge, in a very public space. Dangling mere meters from the dramatic lines of Vancouver House, the chandelier is an organ of luxury, removed from the living feature, operating outside of the body.
Commissioned in 2015, the piece took three years to build, test and install. Walla Walla Foundry, in Washington State, did the design and manufacturing of the individual parts.
Original price projections had the chandelier costing $900,000. As the project advanced, the costs ballooned to $1.2 million. Before the unveiling, the public was given the figure of $3.6 million. This number has now been adjusted, with the final ‘final’ cost coming in at $4.8 million, five times the initial estimate. The Polygon Gallery will handle maintenance going forward, with all costs being billed to Westbank.
Westbank’s Artwash
But why did Westbank feel the need to install the chandelier in the first place? Well, in a sense, they were contractually obligated to as property developers. All Vancouver projects over 100,00 square feet are required to pay a steep development tax or contribute to the public art program in the city. Westbank chose to pool their public art requirements from three development projects to finance the chandelier.
The proximity of the piece embellishes the public space surrounding their tower. At the same time, Westbank is also raising the value of their property. Public art curators have criticized this process as ‘artwashing’ – spending tax money on specific neighbourhoods that don’t necessarily need improvements. Artwashing hurts lower income communities that are geographically distant from large-scale developments. They receive less funding for neighbourhood improvements because the development tax money has been directed at a specific project.
Debate will continue about the cost, placement and role of the chandelier and maybe that’s a good thing. Louis hid his crystal marvels so only his inner circle could enjoy their splendour. At least our chandelier is exposed, spinning and inciting conversation.
