The iy project is an ongoing project of laser light artist Chris Levine. The last time I spoke to Chris we were navigating our way through the Royal Opera House. He had the pressure on as it was getting close to start time for Anthony and the Johnsons. Chris has collaborated with Anthony (now Anohni) amongst other huge acts such as Grace Jones and Massive Attack. He is a pioneer in his field of utilising laser light and holography in his art. On that night, my role was to photograph the stage set and preparations. Secondary was the performance so it was less critical that I made curtain up.

Fast forward a couple of years and it was lovely to catch up with Chris and his iy project on the Pier. My plan was to photograph the installation from the sea on my kayak but the wind had other ideas, so it had to be from the Pier itself. Chris had set lasers on the East Hill and in St Leonards – over a mile from the site on each side, together with a complex set up on the Pier. He gave me the low-down on where the lasers were placed and some suggestions on possible angles.

Rain creates reflections on the Pier decking and that was something I wanted to capture from the off. I also wanted to record the overall impact. Specifically, the context of the environment and personal experiences of the installation with details of the beams.