How can you make popular illuminations? Infiltrate the back side of the production!

Hello! I Fukuoka Tower sky attendant staff. The number of chilly days is increasing during the day, and I feel the signs of winter. At Hakata Station and Tenjin, illuminations decorate the city. At Fukuoka Tower, a Christmas version of the illuminations will be released ♪ The tower will be wrapped with a red ribbon as a gift, and snowflakes will flicker, and the Christmas tree will make you feel excited at this time of year.

Not limited to Christmas, various illuminations will appear depending on the season and Events, but do you care who makes it and how it is made? This time, we interviewed Miki Matsushita, a lighting designer who creates the illuminations for Fukuoka Tower!

Lighting designer Miki Matsushita designs the illuminations for Fukuoka Tower. I am in charge of many lighting designs for the former Fukuoka Prefectural Public Hall Kihinkan, educational facilities, cultural facilities, etc., including the "Hakata LIGHT UP Walk-Hakata Sennen Kagayaki-" held in November every year.

Mr. Matsushita is particular about the illumination of Fukuoka Tower because it is a landmark. "It's something that you can see without feeling depressed and hopeful. Not only the message, but also the aesthetics are important, and we aim to create something that everyone can see and feel beautiful," he said.

The illuminations of Fukuoka Tower have several seasonal themes such as "Spring", "Halloween", and "Christmas". First of all, based on this theme, the design will be devised in-house.

"Sometimes more than 100 ideas come up. I narrow down the ideas, but sometimes I come up with something like" This is ... "(laughs)." For example, in the past I had considered the illumination of beetles with a summer motif, but now it is in storage. It seems that there are motifs that are not suitable for illuminations.

By the way, Mr. Matsushita's favorite is "Halloween". When a witch appears in a suspicious Western-style building and casts magic ... "Is it okay to do this? It's a little adventurous illumination, but the story is packed in a dozen seconds, and I really like it."

When the design is finally set, the next test lighting! At midnight when everyone is sleeping, we will actually LIGHT UP the tower and repeat the test. At Fukuoka Tower, 2700 lighting fixtures made exclusively for the tower are installed inside the tower as shown in the photo, and various designs are expressed by making each lighting program. Adjust this programming for test lighting. “I will experiment many times until I am satisfied,” says Matsushita.

In the illuminations of Fukuoka Tower, many designs with natural motifs such as cherry blossoms in spring and goldfish in summer are adopted, which is why "how to look beautiful" and "how to look real". I am particular about "ka".

When using the goldfish as a motif, observe the movement of the real goldfish. "I've adjusted many times, such as the speed of the swim and the movement of the tail, which look like a real goldfish when illuminated." It's a professional skill! Behind that beautiful illumination, the craftsmen are playing a serious game, aren't they? The illuminations are also filled with the desire to please people. "Actually, there are hidden characters ... If you look closely, sometimes" Ranchu "is swimming in the goldfish," he said with a playful spirit.

In this way, it takes 4 to 5 months to create a design from a motif and finish it as an illumination. I will finally see you. It looks the same every year, and by incorporating trends, small updates may be added. It takes so much time and effort behind the glittering illuminations.

"But it's better to think that it's easy!" "It's like magic!" Is more like an illumination and you have a dream, "smiles. In the future, he wants to challenge the illuminations with the theme of the four seasons. I can't wait to see what kind of illuminations will be born.

In addition to the illuminations, Fukuoka Tower has a lot of fun at night, such as the night view and dinner at Sky Cafe & Dining " Refuge ". Please come and visit us with your family or couple.