Austin's New Year Clock at Auditorium Shores 08

New Years Clock in Austin 2008

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Clock tower will burn for First Night Austin
Last Update: 12/31/2008 6:48 pm

This clock tower will burn New Year's Eve night. Austin is ready to ring in 2009 with the giant First Night Austin outdoor celebration. The New Year’s Eve party is expected to attract more than 100,000 people to the downtown area from 3 p.m. until midnight. The free, family-friendly event includes 60 art exhibits, workshops, a parade, fireworks and other interactive events. The centerpiece of the New Year’s Eve celebration is the Resolution Clock Tower. The three-story, 34 foot tall, dual faced functioning wooden clock is the creation of Community Art Makers. From until 6 p.m., First Night attendees can write their New Year's resolutions on the structure. Then at 8 p.m. the clock will be set ablaze. Austin artists Dave Umlas and Marrilee Ratcliffe are the creative minds behind the intricate sculpture. "So often 'art' is the tangible thing produced, something placed on a wall and revered or reviled," said Ratcliffe. "We're trying to turn this perception on its head a little. What we build is large and meant to create an impact upon introduction, destruction and disappearance." "Our pieces are intentionally massive and intricate. It takes a dedicated team to build them. Upon their destruction, what is left is the skills we have garnered and the relationships we've built, the community we have created and that is the real art. We burn it so that we can restore and build it again," Umlas said.First Night Austin will wrap up the street party with fireworks from 11:45 p.m. until midnight. The fireworks will be ignited on Lady Bird Lake just west of the South 1st Bridge.
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A few burns reported during First Night Austin New Year's celebration
CBS 42 Reporter: Ryan Loyd
Last Update: 1/01 11:23 am

Resolution Clock Burns For New Year's Eve

Spectators at Auditorium Shores watched the Resolution Clock go up in flames to kick off the New Year. New Year's Eve was off to a big bang in Austin. The 35-foot wooden structure at Auditorium Shores, known as the Resolution Clock, was set ablaze shortly before 8:30 p.m. and took nearly half an hour to burn.
Firefighters were on hand to supervise the burn. But as burning embers fell from the sky, wind carried the ashes east, some people complained of being burned on their skin. Others said they walked away with burnt holes in their clothing.
Pat Wheaton is an artist who helped construct the tower. He says he was not aware of anyone sustaining serious injury.
“If someone had short sleeves on, there were embers coming down so they might have gotten hit with those, like a bug bite," he said. "That’s the only thing that I saw," Wheaton added.
Hundreds of thousands of people attended the burning of the Resolution Clock on the grounds of Auditorium Shores. Many lined the First Street Bridge to watch the clock come down.
Some people standing on the grounds were in direct line with the falling embers.
"The embers didn’t carry that much and most it wasn’t embers anymore, it was just ash," Wheaton said.
For the most part, those involved in the burn said the event was a huge success. The tower was constructed by local artists, who dreamt up the idea nearly a year ago.