London’s early morning commuters, very late night revellers and perhaps even the odd pigeon found themselves in for a shock this morning as dawn broke an hour early over Trafalgar Square.
A giant artificial sun bathed onlookers in light at 6.51am as the latest public art installation opened in the square – designed by artists’ collection Greyworld and paid for, in stroke of marketing genius, by fruit juice company Tropicana.
#trafalgersun was trending on Twitter in no time, with people posting their own images and encouraging others to pay a visit.
Perhaps thinking of the UK’s 2 million SAD sufferers currently struggling through the winter weather, Tropicana said:
“Sunlight is something many of us crave mid-winter. We hope that this stunning art installation will both amaze and enthuse those who see it, whilst brightening their mornings on a miserable January day.”
The Trafalgar Sun in numbers
30,000 times bigger than a football
200 metres squared surface area
2,500 kgs in weight
60,000 equivalent number of light bulbs
Andrew Shoben, founder of Greyworld added: “There are very few moments more spectacular and uplifting than watching an early morning sunrise.
“We have tried to capture the evocative nature of this natural phenomenon with the Tropicana Sun, our latest piece of public art, which has been unveiled to help boost the mood of those who experience it.”
The Tropicana Sun art installation will extend the daylight in Trafalgar Square by an additional three hours, though anyone hoping to see it for themselves will have to hurry down in time for tonight's sunset - it will be gone again tomorrow.
Watch the video here: