Friday, February 24, 2017

Art in Street Light Poles

In New Town, we lay a great deal of emphasis on Public Art, Smart Signage and Green & Clean Streets. We have installed original installations on traffic islands, International Signages at crossings, Eco Park and Bus Stands and spectacularly innovative swaying light stalk bunches. We don't allow unplanned hoardings on the Biswa Bangla Sarani - only a few Hidco owned LCD displays. Our mechanical sweeping machines are monitored through GPS while teams of workers and supervisors go around removing illegally pasted posters on public spaces. We are laying stress on renewable energy and even using water bodies to mount solar panels. We are moving to LED street lights to cut down on green house emissions and energy costs.

We are experimenting with street light architecture too. The Alexander Poles of Eco Park (the ones with a U-turned pole holding a heritage gas-lamp-like hood) are already iconic and have been pictured in more facebook photos than I can count. There are sunflower-yellow coloured street light poles in road from Gate 1 of Eco Park as well as on a pathway inside. High mast lights in Eco Park are artistically designed. Reflective garden lights that look like UFOs are installed in Swapnna Bhor to add visual energy into the lonely lives of Senior Citizens. The perforated light emitting totem in Gate 6 of Eco Park and the Totem in Nazrul Tirtha front are attractive installations on their own. Even light emitting squarish benches along the lakeside of Eco Park have drawn attraction.

And now we are installing floral light poles on newly-built cycle tracks in Action Area 1A, opposite to Nazrul Tirtha. It is in tune with the blue-and-white theme of Kolkata but break the monotony of a lonely street pole. Here are two photos i took yesterday soon after installation started:




* * *
Clipping:
Salt Lake Telegraph dt 24 Feb 2017

No comments:

Post a Comment