Large-scale light installations that blend contemporary art and technology are making their mark, lighting up the night from New Orleans and Baltimore to Sydney and London.
Many of these free light festivals include interactive elements that turn spectators into participants who are able to change colors or patterns by moving or playing a game.
The events are also tourism magnets, attracting locals and out-of-towners alike to waterfronts, historic districts, and other neighborhoods on dark winter nights or during other periods when tourist activity may be low.
This summer’s Light City Baltimore, a free, week-long event featured more than 50 attractions, including large-scale installations, projections, interactive technologies, and performances. The event drew about 400,000 attendees, and contributed $33.8 million to the local economy, according to Forward Analytics, a research firm hired to provide independent data following the event.
For downtowns not prepared to launch a full-scale light festival, outlining an interesting piece of architecture with creative lighting also attracts an audience. In March, a crowd gathered in downtown San Antonio, TX, to watch “Kinetic Skyline” bathe the Bank of America Plaza with color. Created with computerized LED light, the effect is of a series of eight columns climbing up the north and south facades of the 28-story building.
The full article appeared in our print edition. To always get the full story, read Downtown Idea Exchange.
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