Lighting Up The World – Works by Designer Barbara Trautmann
Barbara Trautmann combines structural, architectural and lighting elements to create art that is truly mesmerising. The lights she uses twist and turn to provide an optical illusion, as one wonders how the pieces were constructed and how the end result was achieved.
Trautmann was born in Oberhausen, Germany in 1966. Her education includes the study of graphic and exhibition design as well as scenography, painting and three-dimensional design. Her art in the public space enforces her reputation as a great modern artist.
Kaa die Schlange (Kaa the Python) is one of Trautmann’s more notable pieces. Located in the front of the lift tower in the tunnel leading to the Richard Meier Building on the rise overlooking the Rhine, it was inspired by the trains rushing past. Its round, luminescent elements pay tribute to the tunnel that surrounds it.
Splash is another piece that defies logic. Seemingly made of a metal frame with luminescent vertical projections, it is representative of chaos, but it draws the viewer in for a moment of peaceful reflection. It stands out from a serene background of an industrial complex.
Twins is another stunner. It consists of identical pieces that sit on either side of a brick tunnel providing a criss-cross axel of lights. The mirror reflection on the opposite end may make one wonder if they shouldn’t actually be called Quadruplets.
Trautmann’s work is an example of modern industrial design. Best suited for commercial complexes and public spaces, they give everyone an opportunity to incorporate art in their everyday lives. They add beauty to dull backgrounds proving the literal definition of light at the end of the tunnel.