Spectacular 100th birthday party for Liverpool’s most famous building
- Mind-blowing 3D event marks 100th birthday of Royal Liver Building
- UK premier for international company behind the projection
- Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra to give free concert
- Special exhibition of Liver Building artefacts and photographs
Liverpool will celebrate the 100th birthday of its world-famous Liver Building with an awe-inspiring and unmissable audio-visual spectacular.
Chronicling the last 100 years of Liverpool as witnessed by the building itself, the 3D Son et Lumiere projection will use images and sound to bring the building to life with a cutting-edge digital homage to its unique place in history.
The celebrations mark the long-awaited UK debut for the internationally acclaimed Makula architectural projection company who left crowds in Prague awe-struck with their 600th Anniversary show projected onto the city’s Astronomical Clock.
This very special FREE ‘On The Waterfront’ weekend at the Pier Head on 22 – 24 July celebrates an historic weekend for the city, also marking the opening of the architecturally acclaimed Liverpool Museum which encapsulates the city’s 800 year history. The city’s newest building will also be part of the mind-boggling digital creation when it will, be transformed into a gift, unwrapping for the people of Liverpool.
The Macula who are based in the Czech Republic have never worked in the UK before but their debut is set to be something generations will talk of for years to come.
Martin Posta of The Macula, said: "The Liverpool challenge is one of the most important events for The Macula team in 2011.
“The On The Waterfront event will be the place where modern architectural mapping meets Liverpool's history and its contemporaneousness. The creative approach to the projection will come from the historical differences of the buildings.”
The Royal Liver Building will also open its doors to the public for a first-of-its-kind exhibition from 19-24 July, 10am-18.00, when the building’s many historic artefacts and photographs will be on show. There will be a limited number of tours of the Royal Liver Building during the week of the exhibition.
“We’re aiming to take visitors on a historic journey from the building’s very inception through to today,” said Royal Liver’s Head of Property, Peter Fane.
“Visitors can look forward to seeing attractions including a recreation of our celebrated Grade II Listed Board Room, the original plans for the building, photographs dating back to its opening and much more.”
A Royal Liver Building Facebook page, www.facebook.com/royalliverbuilding has also gone live in a bid to collate local stories, photographs and memories about the building as well as enabling people who cannot attend the exhibition to view the catalogued artefacts.
Each evening the celebrations will start around 8.30pm with a special musical performance. Blues favourite Connie Lush will be whipping up audiences into a frenzy on the Friday before Saturday’s revellers enjoy a one-off concert by the internationally renowned Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. Liverpool sensations 6ix Toys, graduates of Sir Paul McCartney’s Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts, will entertain the crowds on the Sunday.
Also, throughout each evening, giant, beautifully illuminated lanterns representing key points in Liverpool’s history will be on display at the Pier Head complete with illuminated fish swimming in the canal.
Claire McColgan, director of Culture Liverpool, said: “Liverpool is rightly famous for its historic architecture with more than 2,500 listed buildings, but it is a city also in the process of transformation and is now praised for the way the old sits comfortably alongside the new.
“As Liverpool’s newest iconic building is unveiled we celebrate the history of its most famous and recognisable structure in the most magnificent way. The Macula extravaganza will showcase the finest in international artistry to mark the anniversary of one of the UK’s most significant buildings and herald the birth of the next generation of architectural excellence.
“The Liver Building was controversial from the start - it was the first to use reinforced concrete which was revolutionary at the time, but because of the modern look of the building, people didn’t take to it at first. And now we can safely say it’s one of the most loved buildings in the world.
“It’s wonderful we can mark the special birthday of one of the city’s most influential buildings and at the same time usher in a new era with the opening of our new world-class museum which I’m sure will prove to be a hugely popular attraction.”
This year’s series of events were kicked off in April by the hugely successful Spring on the Waterfront which attracted around 60,000 visitors to the Pier Head during the ten day maritime extravaganza. Historic Tall Ships, regattas, a sea shanty festival and historic canal boats all took part in the festival.
The final On the Waterfront event will take place from 8-15 September 2011 and will see a new-look Mersey River Festival return for the first time since 2005. A royal naval visit along with Cunard Cruise Liners, including the new Queen Elizabeth and the Queen Mary 2, will all be part of the much-anticipated activities.
Last year’s On The Waterfront series of events brought in more than £1.2 million to the city’s economy and this year’s events are funded by Liverpool City Council in partnership with European Regional Development Funding.
For a taste of what treats are in store in July, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2DIU8qB9V0 and see what The Macula recently produced in Dubai for Fanta and for the 600th anniversary show of the Prague astronomical clock http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in9BgR-P5b4
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