The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) has saved more than 140,000 lives since its foundation in 1824.
The largest registered charity of its kind, the RNLI relies on a network of 40,000 volunteers that make up 95% of the organisation.
The RNLI provides 24-hour lifeboat search and rescue service around the coasts and many inland waterways of the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Channel Islands and Isle of Man. It also offers a seasonal lifeguard service on many of the busiest beaches in England and Wales, with over 200 lifeboat stations and a fleet of more than 400 lifeboats.
Many courageous and selfless RNLI volunteers who lost their lives are proudly commemorated in their local communities. However, the RNLI memorial sculpture at its headquarters in Poole, Dorset provides a poignant place where each and every one of them is named and recognised for their sheer bravery.
The memorial acts as a source of inspiration for current and future generations of lifeboat crew, lifeguards, supporters and fundraisers.
The large sculpture by Sam Holland depicts a person in a boat saving another from the water. It symbolises the history and future of the RNLI in the most basic and humanitarian form. Sam intended her design to be bold and simple, incorporating the elements of courage, loss and remembrance.
LTP Integration was brought onboard the project when the lighting design elements for the memorial were still in the mock-up stages.
Working to a lighting design by Speirs & Major, LTP Integration was briefed to install and assist in implementing the final specification for the monument.
The 4.5 metre high memorial is lit with a combination of fixtures, some integrated into the structure itself and others set back on special mounting poles.
An essential design requirement was for all physical evidence of the light sources to be concealed, with just their effects adding presence and form to the work.
Fixed warm white LED key lights were mounted on the dark grey plinth beneath the memorial sculpture, hidden behind the boat. One pair is used to uplight the lifeboat crew member and the boat interior, with a single fixture illuminating the casualty.
Rigged on a six metre pole off to the side is a Meyer Superlight discharge source in open white, carefully focussed to skim flatly across the top of the entire sculpture.
This also casts distinct shadows from the ribs of the boat down onto the plinth, adding texturing and drama to the flat surface. The fixture is fitted with an anti-glare snoot to minimise any potential distraction factors for passing motorists.
Another five of the same Superlights, fitted with double blue high temperature filters, downlight the surrounding area, creating a shimmering effect to accentuate the warmth of the lighting focused on the lifeboat crew member.
Completing the architectural lighting element of the project are two rows of single recessed cool white ACDC LEDs, complete with eyelid bezels to reduce glare and subtly denote the access ramp.
The whole installation is time clock controlled, switching on at dusk and off at dawn.
The new lighting scheme beautifully accentuates the contrasts between the matt grey surface of the plinth and clean sheen stainless steel of the boat, allowing the work to come alive at night as well as being appreciated during the day.
“It was a real honour to work on something as significant, poignant and relevant as this, as well as having the opportunity to light such a stunning piece of art.” – Terry Reeves, Project Manager (LTP Integration)
For further information on the products and services used on the RNLI Memorial in Poole, Dorset, or to discuss a similar Façade & Public Realm / Structures & Monuments lighting scheme, please get in touch today.
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