RUTA PALIONYTE
light designer-artist
daytime
El Guarapo garden, Lanzarote
El Guarapo Apartamentos and its garden areas are located in unique volcanic island Lanzarote, Canary Islands.
It started in 1987, when renowned local architect Luis Díaz Feria was commisioned to design the complex. Architect created this small scale complex by combining expression of both, traditional architecture and modern volumes. The garden with various species of the plants is an important integral part of El Guarapo architectural complex.
During the day the garden is washed by intense daylight, which causes sharp shadows of the plants on the bright architectural features.
Due to the islands proximity to the equator, the sun sets rapidly and the dark of night arrives suddenly. In the evening the plants seem to dissolve back into the darkness of the black lava as the clean air and reduced light pollution on the island reveals the darkest skies.
At night the garden transforms to intimate space, where the light discreetly focusses on the fragments of the plants- their shapes, textures and colours. Following the existing architectural lines of the complex, small islands of native plants become the protagonists of a shadow play - their flowing forms projected as silhouettes over the large cactuses.
Text: Matthew Scott, Rūta Palionytė.
Night photos by Ieva Baranauskaitė.
Daylight photos (the 6th and 7th) by Lina Pilibavičiūtė.
2019 Lanzarote, Grand Canaria.