OVO Hydro, Glasgow



The Building

Designed by Foster + Partners architects and opened in September 2013, the OVO Hydro is the largest entertainment venue in Scotland. It is built on the site of the former Queen's Dock and is part of the Scottish Event Campus.

The unique façade of the OVO Hydro, made up of pneumatic translucent cushions, has been made possible by using a special film originally developed for the space industry. This allows natural light to illuminate the foyers during the day and the arena to ‘glow’ at night.

The distinctive elliptical sloping shape of the OVO Hydro was inspired by ancient Greek and Roman amphitheatres. This shape offers the optimum balance of viewing angle and distance from the stage.


The Photograph


This is a single image taken using a Laowa 15mm f/4.5 lens on a Sony A7RII. 

The main features of this building (to my eye at least) is the uniqe cushioned main body and the sweeping kerb at the base, so I have ensured that they stand out as the brightest parts of the building. The light was coming from above and slightly to the right (you can tell from the shadows on the sign) so I have sculpted the light on this one to be sympathetic to that.

I have intentionally left in some hint of the buildings around the Hydro, to offer some context on where the building is - the tower sticking up just to the left of the Hydro is the University of Glasgow for example.

This is the second time that I have photographed this building, I hope that this second attempt improves on the first.

See more of my pictures at my Gallery

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