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Top Ten Highlights of Light Night 2022
22nd September 2022
As moonlight casts a shadow, a magical illuminated playground hits the streets of Leeds as Light Night returns! Over 50 spectacular light installations, projections and artworks gather within the city, with live performances and interactive installations for all to enjoy. This year’s event is focused on the theme of ‘Playful City’ – here are our 10 MUST SEE highlights from the upcoming event:
LUX – Artist: Focal Studios and DefProc Engineering
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 7pm – 10:30pm
Location: Leeds Civic Hall, Millennium Square, LS1 1UR
What 3 Words: ///follow.couches.flows
Inside a futuristic control pod, inspired by classic 80s sci-fi and retro-futuristic games, use contactless gesture controls to play with a wondrous projection mapped onto the architecture of Leeds Civic Hall. LUX is an immersive augmented reality game and art installation that tests your problem-solving skills to bring the Civic Hall to life! Are you up for the challenge?
Continuum – Artist: Illumaphonium
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: Millennium Square, LS1 1UR
What 3 Words: ///posts.broker.lease
Standing at 2.5 metres tall, Continuum consists of a 20-metre geometric maze of illuminated and resonating mirrors. Located by Millennium Square, approach Continuum and be enchanted by an all-encompassing soundscape! As you move through the installation, you’ll hear sounds that can also be felt!
Drop of Light – Artist: Gijs van Bon
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: Main Auditorium Carriageworks Theatre, Millennium Square, LS1 1UR
What 3 Words: ///zeal.sudden.lately
Drop of Light combines displays of fluorescent liquid and ultra-violet laser lights to breathe life into a drop of light, as you feel all the senses from this wonderful installation. The unique space consists of animation, art, technology, and a lot of mathematics!
House of Cards – Artist: OGE Group
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: Sydney Street (Outside Victoria Gate)
What 3 Words: ///wells.lights.shack
Building a House of Cards nowadays may sound nostalgic – but there Is more to it than childhood memories! House of Cards is a light installation that is slick and joyful in the daytime, turning into a beautiful light show at night. It consists of 128 light boxes, which illuminate to a preconfigured choreography. Will the House of Cards blow away, or continue to rise towards the heavens?
SPARK! Drummers
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm, 7:20pm, 8:10pm and 9:30pm (20 mins performance)
Location: Event Space, Trinity Leeds & Albion Street, LS1 5ER
What 3 Words: ///nasal.tile.fonts
The hugely popular Spark drummers return for Light Night 2022! Experience a sensational street-theatre performance consisting of magical live music, movement, and lighting in which mysterious characters composed of light and sound transform the city of Leeds.
Illumaphonium – Artist: Michael Davis
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: Bond Court, LS1 2JZ
What 3 Words: ///fence.duty.boxing
Dynamic and interactive, sensory and music making – Illumaphonium is the first of its kind! Standing at three metres tall, the installation consists of more than 100 illuminated chime bars. Interact with Illumaphonium and watch as your interactions with the chime bars helps create changing lights and sounds for a fun experience!
Joyride – Artist: Greenaway & Greenaway
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 7:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: City Square, LS1 1PJ
What 3 Words: ///trash.limes.heads
JOYRIDE is a frenetic projection experience, as you feel all the thrills and spills at City Square with a unique visit to a Future Funfair. The show turns The Queens Hotel into a juxtaposition of retro / future aesthetic designs. This brand-new commission for Light Night features crazy rides and a dynamic soundtrack, twisted for the 21st century!
Zauberin des Mondes – Artist: Jules Huvig / Rencontres Audiovisuelles
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 7:30pm – 10:30pm (repeats throughout the evening)
Location: Lifting Tower, Wellington Place, LS1 4AP
What 3 Words: ///debate.spare.allow
A modern take on the tale of Rapunzel, Zauberin des Mondes tells the quest of a character through impossible architectures. Poetic and dreamlike, the projection mapping from our twin city of Lille, is placed under the protection of the mysterious and luminous figure of the Moon.
End over End – Artist: Studio Vertigo
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm – 10:30pm
Location: Plinth, Playhouse Square, Quarry Hill, LS2 7UP
What 3 Words: ///claps.spoke.claps
End over End is a sculpture of a large scale slinky! In this giant form it’s both nostalgic and surrealistic, playfully transforming buildings and rooftops into a virtual playground. Each coil of the spring is illuminated in turn to create the familiar flowing form of a slinky tumbling end-over-end into the shadows!
Bramley Illuminated Swim – Artist: Tine Bech
Thursday 13th & Friday 14th October: 6:30pm – 10pm
Location: Bramley Baths, Broad Lane, LS13 3DF
What 3 Words: ///lungs.edgy.dates
An immersive and playful light installation in the historic setting of Bramley Bath. Experience a swim like no other as a cloud of colour and light hovers over the waters of the pool, creating an ever changing and surreal environment as you move through the water! Artist Tine Bech has created a massive immersive installation, transforming the familiar surroundings of this community pool into something other worldly and unique.
If you’re planning a trip to Leeds for Light Night check out our Love Leeds for Longer pages for more inspiration and guides for things to do, where to stay and where to eat. There are also some useful guides below to help you plan your next visit to Leeds.