For this weeks creative practice I decided to look at contrast specifically in relation to light vs dark. This week I was struck by illuminated signs and how they stand out against the darkness of night. I don’t know if it is because their sole purpose is to catch your attention but I really find that I noticed a lot of illuminated signs lately. So I started to think about what it is that catches my attention. First and foremost it has to be the contrast of the light and bright colours of an illuminated sign against the dark static background of the night sky. The first sign that caught my and that I thought of when I started thinking about signs at night is a parking sign downtown on Rose St.
Then while I was downtown taking this photo I noticed a payphone. Which I really would never notice during the day but because of the contrast it caught my eye at night:
Finally I noticed the large neon coffee sign at Atlantis Coffee on Victoria Avenue. Not only is it a great example of contrast but who doesn’t love coffee, right?!?
I really like the contrast of lighting at night. There is something about it that I can’t put my finger on. It is something I’ll have to explore more. There is something really intriguing to me about the different way lighting is used at night and what it can represent. Maybe I’ll have to do another post. I’m already thinking about the lights that line the path in Wascana Park and the image of the city from high above or far away all lit up at night. This may be something I will explore in the future. I wonder what it is aesthetically that draws me to these images. With that said it is time to go do some more thinking, exploring and investigating into artificial lights at night.
Will Whitten 