The cities of Lyon, Oulu, Turin and LUCI Association, partners of the Light & Art in Public Spaces(LAiPS) project, co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme, are hosting the international conference Bringing life to public spaces with Light Art, taking place in Turin on the 2nd and 3rd of November 2023.During this conference, the Light & Art Map, co-created within the LAiPS project, has been launched.
Co-creating the Light & Art Map
From 2021 to 2023, the project partners completed successful rounds of Light & Art Labs in Turin, Lyon, Oulu, Amsterdam, and Rotterdam.
During these Labs, they experienced the profound impact that permanent light and art has on the identity and ambiance of urban spaces. In many ways, light art can enhance the feeling of security and wellbeing and develop placemaking after dark. Permanent light art is a good way to support social interactions, as citizens engage in dialogue about the installations and gain a sense of pride in their neighbourhood.
To gather and share more information about light art, the idea came about to develop a new digital tool, based on a map. The partners wanted to make this cultural resource accessible to a wider audience: for more people to experience light art installations and experience it in a new way! The partners referenced the artworks during a series of night tours and co-created the Light & Art Map: imagining, designing, and developing it together within the EU cooperation project.
Discover the Light & Art Map
The purpose of the Light & Art Map is to help users find the light artworks and learn about the artistic intent behind them. Residents will discover or re-discover their city in a new light – at night. It also has a strong added value for visitors who will experience places that are often unknown and unsuspected.
For professionals, the Light & Art Map can be used as a desktop tool to dig deeper into the technical aspects and learn how cities integrate light art within their wider urban lighting strategies or cultural planning.
The Light & Art Map currently features:
- Over 90 light art works in the 7 cities of Amsterdam, Eindhoven, Jyväskylä, Lyon, Oulu, Rotterdam and Turin. More LUCI member cities will be invited to add their light art works on the Map in the coming months.
- 4 different languages are available for many of the artwork descriptions: English, French, Italian and Finnish.
- The search bar allows usersto find an installation by artist name, keyword, filter by city or type of light art: light art installation, projection, murals, bridge/tunnel, media façade, park, fountain, sculpture, projection.
- By clicking on any artwork, users have access to more information including a detailed description, the artistic intent, the technical solution developed, the energy consumption, stakeholders and partners involved, and more. Photos of the artworks are also included.
- Each artwork is georeferenced: in two clicks, the user can be taken to Google Maps for directions to the specific artwork.
