The new northern lights are in town again, as the annual light festival Lux Helsinki kicks off this Saturday. Since 2009 Helsinki has put on one of the largest light festivals in Europe, with this year’s festival promising to be one of the best yet.
An exciting range of light installation artworks will be on display, including internationally acclaimed works together with original works commissioned specifically for the festival.
Situated this year in Etu-Töölö, 12 light installations will be featured along a route starting at Kansalaistori Square and continuing via Finlandia Hall and Kunsthalle Helsinki to the National Museum of Finland.
(Source: www.luxhelsinki.fi)
It is recommended that viewers follow the route in the designated order, so as to fully appreciate the theatrical impact that the designers have envisioned, but the route is completely open and visitors can enjoy the display in whichever way that suits them best.
With the winter darkness providing the perfect contrast, the light installations will be on display from 5 pm to 10 pm continuously. This year will also see a number of satellite installations outside of the main route, as far away as Hanasaari, which is located in Helsinki’s neighboring city Espoo.
There will also be events happening outside of these hours, as the second annual Lux Morning event takes place on the last day of the event between 7 am and 9 am at the National Museum of Finland and at Nervanderin Puistikko.
Image: Matti Pyykkö/Helsinki Marketing
Finlandia Hall has been selected this year as the architectural focal point on which an impressive light and sound display will be projected recreating the effect of water.
The installations are not only visually stunning but are discussion points for topical issues such as water conservation, the role of AI and migration.
Visitors can expect a highly interactive experience, with activities such as UV light face painting and creating your own light art, along with a number of other special programmes designed to complement the light art display.
On Sunday 6th January at Helsinki’s new central Library Oodi, visitors can meet and ask questions from the artists behind the installations.
Lux Helsinki 2019 is open from Saturday 5th to Wednesday 9th January.
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