Digital Mapping Artists Revealed For Derry~Londonderry’s year as UK City of Culture

Digital Mapping

One of the highlights of Derry~Londonderry’s year as UK City of Culture will see creative company Artichoke bringing the Lumiere light festival to the city for four magical winter nights from 28 November to 1 December.

New artists announced today include the award-winning digital mapping studio Novak, who will transform Austins Department Sto re with a breath-taking 3D projection inspired by the tales of Jules Verne; Polish-American artist Krzystof Wodziczko, winner of the Hiroshima Art Prize for his contribution to peace; and Tim Etchells’ A Stitch in Time, a 23-metre long neon on the Rosemount Shirt Factory.
French sculptor Cédric Le Borgne, whose ethereal illuminated sculptures in human form will appear to fly around the Peace Bridge, while local artist Deepa Mann-Kler will re-memorialise the Undertones’ lyric “A Teenage Dream’s So Hard To Beat”, which will be emblazoned in bright neon on the BT Exchange Building at Queens Quay.

Other headline projects include Twice Upon a Time by digital mapping artists Ocubo, who are working with over 100 schoolchildren from across the community to redesign and “take over” Ebrington, turni ng it into a giant animated dream world; French fire alchemists, Compagnie Carabosse, who will transform St Columb’s Park into a fantastical fire garden, and the Paris-based Irish duo Cleary-Connolly with their interactive artwork Change Your Stripes.

With a mix of artworks and interventions all made from light, many created especially for the city and seen here for the first time, the festival celebrates the myriad of ways that artists use the medium in their practice. Alongside established artists, Lumiere will include new works by local creatives commissioned under Lumiere’s BRILLIANT scheme.

Lumiere will weave a nocturnal art trail through the city, from the Fountain to the Bogside, and from Ebrington to the city Walls, highlighting its architecture, inviting audiences to explore their urban landscape and challenging how pe ople think about and use public space.

“Lumiere is about the unexpected” says Helen Marriage, Artistic Director. “Buildings will change their shape and appearance; human forms will seem to fly through the air; parks and empty public spaces will become places where strange and delightful things happen – a fire garden, the remains of a circus, an abstract artwork that comes to life as you walk by.
“Lumiere is exciting because it invites you to do what you might not normally do – to wander about the city in the dark and feel okay about it; to discover things, feelings and places you didn’t know existed. Lumiere is about changing the way people think about the city and what is possible.”

Culture Company Executive Programmer Graeme Farrow said: “In our progamme for the year, one of the main themes was to tell a new story about Derry~Londonderry and I can’t imagine a better way of doing that that having thousands of people coming here and seeing the city in a completely new light.”

DCAL Minister Carál Ní Chuilín said: “As we enter the finale of the City of Culture’s 2013 programme there are still many reasons for people to make the trip over the Glenshane to Derry. Perhaps one of the brightest and largest visual events, Lumiere is scheduled to light up the city.

“Over four days local and international artists, community groups and lighting designers will illuminate the city’s walls, buildings and streets.  In many ways Lumiere can be seen as a beacon for all those who have not yet made the journey to Derry. It promises to be a visual feast and I hope may open so me eyes and shine a light on this wonderful city, its vibrancy and enthusiasm.”

Joe O’Mahoney, Managing Director NIE said: “At NIE, we work 24/7 to keep power flowing and the lights on in our homes and businesses so we are delighted to be associated with this event which will creatively, artistically and dramatically light up Derry~Londonderry over a winter weekend.”

Lumiere Derry~Londonderry, Thursday 28 November-Sunday 1 December, 5.30-10pm. www.lumiere-festival.com #lumiere-derry

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