Fireworks for Celle (Otto Piene)

A dynamic body of light and space

Like solid fountains of fire, two monumental sculptures soar into the sky in front of the Kunstmuseum (Museum of Art) in Celle. The 8.5 m high "fireworks" made of light, red lacquer and steel were created by the artist Otto Piene. For Robert Simon, the director of the world's first 24-hour art museum, the double sculpture was the crowning culmination of the architectural transformation of the building, as Piene's light sculptures are in stark contrast to glowing lights of the foyer. Anyone visiting Celle at night is drawn to the Museum of Art by a beam of light that can be seen for miles.

When designing the work of art, above all, Piene focused on the effect his sculptures would have on the surrounding area. The new light sculpture consists of a pair of conical vertical tubes, each carrying a sheaf of steel fireworks. They are lit at night and send a vertical beam of light into the sky.

This light plays upon the glass facade of the museum to create a dynamic interactive body of light and space.

Otto Piene is a co-founder of the artist group ZERO and is internationally renowned, among other things, for his spectacular Sky Art installations. In 2003 he received the World Art Prize. As part of his work in Celle, the artist created his first steel sculpture. It was through this that Piene put a long-held wish into practice: "Since my first helium-borne, air-filled star flowers, I had the idea of making them out of steel - because steel is weatherproof and durable".