This weekend marks 350 years since the great fire burned through the City of London. As a result of this anniversary, London is hosting events this weekend including an artistic fire projected onto St. Paul's dome, a burning street on the Thames, toppling dominoes across the city, and a fire garden at Tate Modern on South Bank. Fire Garden is the work of French arts group Compagnie Carabosse, and it is an art exhibition made using fire and metal sculpture. I previously visited one of their Fire Garden installations at Milton Keynes during 2012 and again a large-scale fire garden at Battersea Power Station a couple of years ago. The installations are truely one of a kind.
The fire garden was held in the grounds in front of Tate Modern on the South Bank with views over St. Paul's Cathedral, which was lit up with flames projected on the dome later on in the evening.
We arrived a little early and watched the fires being lit and waited until the dusk and darkess fell before we received the full effect of the flickering lights and the smell of fire. The white shirts were used as lanterns above.
The above contraption was new, and it consisted of several pipes with flames emitting at different angles, water, and steam.
The human-like robotic kinetic sculptures were also back and casting amazing shadows onto the walls of the Tate. A couple of new ones were present, acting like trapeze artists and cycling back and forth on a highwire with flames underneath.
The giant orbs burn slowly, creating unique shapes and colours in the coals inside.
The above contraption was one that I've seen at the other events. It is manned with someone turning a wheel to adjust the heat and pressure of the flame. Every now and again, the flame soars into the air with an almightly burst.
The long pipes with symbols are harder to photograph, but I managed to capture a decent photograph of the fire garden.
In addition to the different firey sculptures, music was also played to the crowds. The music set the theme of the fire garden. Beer and BBQ food could also be purchased, and the event is free. It is open from 20:00-11:00 each night until (and including) Sunday. It is well worth a visit. I visited it on Thursday, and the crowds were not too great, but it may get busier when word gets out.
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