“Bay Lights” on the Bay Bridge will go out, efforts are being made to create a new, better creation

The sheet of light descends Sunday after illuminating the western span of the bay bridge for 10 years. But with enough donors, it will return “in a more glorious display,” founder Ben Davis said Friday.

Bay lights shine in the bay area for many despite exposure to sand, mud and vibration 24/7 for the past decade.

Now it’s time to dismantle them, as they are failing faster than they can be repaired economically.

“I’m sure they’ll be back,” Davis said in a phone interview, explaining what residents can see when they do.

Davis wants more people in the Bay Area to be able to see the lights, and he wants drivers to travel through a “public art portal at night.”

Currently, drivers on the bridge cannot see The Bay Lights except through their rearview mirrors. The proposed design will create a slightly undulating pattern of low power monochromatic light up to 230 feet overhead at a distance of 1.8 miles.

The light will wrap around the cables on the north side of the west span when recreated. Currently, the lights are only on one side of the cables.

“There is a sense of mystery and magic about this piece,” said Leo Villareal, an artist who worked with Davis on the light installation.

People see the lights and can’t help but say something to the person walking next to them. It binds people together, Villareal said. According to him, it’s not about language or images, but about something deeper.

The light patterns created by The Bay Lights never repeat themselves. According to Villarreal, the initial installation took 2.5 years from initial concept to completion.

The challenge Davis and others are working on is to make sure the new installation doesn’t distract drivers. He works with highway engineers and the California Highway Patrol to keep drivers safe.

The light installation hasn’t caused a single traffic problem in the last 10 years, Davis says, and that includes a bridge trip equivalent to 40 trips to and from the sun.

“He immediately became an iconic image for the Embarcadero, drawing visitors to the city,” said Jill Manton, director of the San Francisco Art Commission’s Public Art Foundation and Special Initiatives.

Manton helped win the commission’s approval and helped write a resolution supporting it for the commission.

Once it fails, it could take eight to 10 months to reinstall after an ongoing fundraising campaign. Davis is trying to raise $11 million to fund the project over the next 10 years.

He is looking for 10 donors who can each donate $1 million, as well as $1 million in crowdfunding donations. Details on the effort so far will be revealed Sunday at 7:45 pm at Epic Steak, which is located at 369 The Embarcadero and fronts The Bay Lights.

The new creation will have double the number of lights, or 50,000 LEDs. New installation gifts can be made for over $5,200 as of Friday afternoon.

“Bay Lights has become one of the icons of San Francisco and we hope the fundraising campaign to save this important light art installation is successful so they can come back even bigger and better than before,” said Joe D’Alessandro , the president. and CEO of the San Francisco Tourism Association, the city’s official marketing organization.

“We encourage San Francisco businesses and residents to support efforts to keep The Bay Lights lighting our beautiful city for years to come,” D’Alessandro said.