Double Take Projections was delighted to be approached by York BID to create ‘Colour and Light’.  We had wanted to do a lighting show at York Minster for some years, following our successful lighting shows at St Pauls and Coventry cathedrals.  This project was more about projecting elements of the building and showcasing detail above eye level which is often missed and highlighting the excellent craftsmanship over the centuries. One scene also pays homage to those that constructed the cathedral by illuminating the facade with their mason’s marks; the inscriptions that they would carve into the pieces of stone they worked on. Reflecting how the colours emphasise parts of the Minster, our team took things that may be hidden and brought them to the forefront.  We created an immersive experience for the whole family, illuminating the South Transept of York Minster Cathedral into a glowing delight of multi-coloured glory.

 As well as paying homage to the construction of the cathedral and incorporating nods to local history, a particular focus was bringing York Minster’s mediaeval stained glass as the UK’s largest expanse of mediaeval stained glass to the spotlight. Collaged compositions of abstract and classical biblical stories were animated by our design team and beamed onto the towering transept walls – shining a new light on the 600-year-old window illustrations.  There’s almost an overwhelming amount of detail in the glass windows, so one of our aims was to bring to the forefront some of the lesser-known pieces – allowing viewers to find something new that they might not have noticed before. Many areas of the stained-glass windows are very abstract too which we wanted to highlight – illuminating the facade with colourful kaleidoscopic scenes, with the elements taken directly from the windows and repositioned to fit the building.  The stained-glass scenes are also paired with choral music that was recorded within York Minster.