New light art installation transforms Hoxton bar into “Instagram heaven”

 

A Hoxton bar has transformed itself into an art installation, creating what it claims is ‘an Instagram heaven’ for its customers.

Hoxton Square Bar and Kitchen commissioned the work,  ‘RGB Universe’ from  Carnovsky, a Milan based duo, who specialise in coloured light installations. RGB stands for red, green and blue, the dominant colours in the work which covers the entire interior of the bar and restuarant.

“It’s almost impossible to walk into the venue without seeing people snapping away at the wall,” said Chloe Uppington, head of events and marketing for Hoxton Square. “It definitely creates a shared interest for our customers to chat about and get involved with each other’s photo shoots.”

With canvas’ and wallpaper around every corner, and the RGB lights switched on, the entire space is transformed. The walls are constantly shifting as the light highlights different lines, seemingly revealing entirely unique drawings.

Although it’s not unusual for London bars to attempt a face-lift via the contemporary art route, Hoxton Square Bar considered their social media clout from the start.

They had Instagram on their mind when they first commissioned the piece. Uppington said: “Of course, it’s ideal to create something that people will want to share and talk about online.”

With a demographic who “live on Instagram”, offering more than just cocktails is important to the team at Hoxton Square Bar.

The constantly shifting reality becomes a unique backdrop for a collection of pictures or a well-timed gif-style Boomerang on Instagram. The whole space plays perfectly into Instagram’s move towards animated images, with support brought out for video, animated GIFs and live streaming over the past few years.

The response on social media seems to be promising. Searching #RGBUniverse or #HoxtonSquareBar shows an unusually cohesive theme as visitors post their photos of the installation.

Uppington said: “The response online has been great. The space has been completely transformed so we’ve had lots of bloggers and influencers keen to come and take their own videos of the installation.”

 

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Carnovskys RGB universe Pic: Sophie Kenny

Playing into the influencer culture is arguably smart marketing. Business Insider predicts spending on Instagram influencer marketing is set to increase to $7.5 billion by 2022.

Hoxton Square Bar’s installation is the latest in a series by Carnovsky, who are Francesco Rugi and Silvia Quintanilla. They have been working on their RGB themed collection since 2010, exploring the interaction between colour and light.

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