The Copenhagen Light Festival opened on Friday, with as many as 50 distinct installations making it the largest light festival in Europe. The event will end on February 28.
According to the official festival website “the festival presents a wide range of light based works – such as sculpture, installation, projection mapping, event and illumination created by both established and upcoming light artists, lighting designers, students and organizations.”
“We really want to fantastically brighten up February’s three weeks of cold, darkness and winter holidays in Copenhagen, so that life and experiences are created for both locals and tourists, contributing to a sustainable experience economy for Copenhagen,” Jesper Kongshaug chairman of the board of Copenhagen Light Festival said.
Following the repeal of COVID-19 restrictions in Denmark, organisers hope to welcome more visitors than last year, when over 500,000 visited the event during a three-week period.
Works of light
One Danish artist created an installation from 5,000 pieces of yellow plastic found in nature. They were cleaned and assembled into a 3.6-meter-tall globe-shaped construction called “A Dozen Sun”, the installation was made by Maj D. from Denmark.
Another artist Francois Gauriaud said he hoped his work called “Phenix”, “ would make people think about travelling and flying and going around the world” after two years of COVID-19 restrictions. “Phenix” is accompanied by audio of birdsong celebrating nature.
Emotion and exposition
Peter Garde, a guest visiting the festival expressed his glee that the event took place. “It does something to your heart. It opens your mind. It makes a feeling inside of you of optimism because the winter and the last two years has been kind of closing. And now we are opening up and this light is helping you,” he stressed.
The majority of the light works are placed along the quay and on the bicycle bridges in the bike city central of the world.
As a new element, many works will also be turned on in the early morning, when people go to work.
The beginning of February is the coldest day in Denmark and the Nordic countries with temperatures often below zero degrees Celsius.
source:
Reuters, Copenhagen Light Festival