Just like every year, the Route of Light will offer an exceptional experience once again this year. Each of the captivating artworks of this special light route encompassing downtown Pécs will win visitors' hearts. Its 19 stations involve iconic buildings of the city center, but due to the ever-increasing interest, it had to be expanded to an even larger area. Thus, beyond the concert hall of the Kodály Centre, which debuted last year successfully, the universe of light stretches all the way to the Balokány park and the Zsolnay Quarter.
The artists of The Route of Light reflect on today's topical subjects. Using artificial intelligence, the interiors of an exhibition venue can be transformed in an interactive way, while another work examines the current role of fire as an ancient element defining our civilization through augmented reality.
This year's creator of the Light Carpet covering Janus Pannonius Street will be IMRE FORK. The urban designer, boasting with a strong graffiti background, has been painting for 25 years and creating in various styles and formats, which are significantly influenced by street art. Several of his works can be seen at the international urban art exhibition STREET UP displayed at m21 Gallery during the festival.
This year, the festival favourite venue will also have a smaller-scale version debuting in Szepesy Street, where visitors can set out to a fabulous journey without changing places, as the entire pavement surface starts moving under their feet.
In the Árkád Pécs shopping mall, one can examine the scientific theory of the origin of life through the three-dimensional creation of LIMELIGHT on a 100 m2 LED wall, while the team of the Swiss LUCID COLLECTIVE will turn the Balokány Park into an enchanted forest of light.
The central element of the Zsolnay Light Festival is the mosque located on the main square of the city. Thanks to the work Gravity by László ANDRÁS Nagy specifically designed for the iconic building in the center of gravity of the event, festivalgoers can take part in a special interactive projection.
The events of the festival and the attractions of the Route of Light presented in public spaces can be visited free of charge, while those presented in enclosed spaces, i.e., the Route of Light Extra venues can be viewed by purchasing a wristband. Among the works offering an unparalleled experience, two masterpieces of light art stand out:
The grandiose work entitled Intangible #form will be presented in the concert hall of the Kodály Centre. The first of the works presented in Hungary by the young Japanese artist, SHOHEI FUJIMOTO will feature hundreds of moving 3D structures created by red-hot laser beams, filling the vast space available, which can seem real and intangible at the same time. In addition to Japanese refine purity, the artwork creates a visceral sensual experience in the viewer.
French light artist Joanie LEMERCIER is considered one of the most influential creators of digital art of the twenty-first century, and her popularity is evidenced by the fact that she has collaborated with Jay Z and Flying Lotus, among others. Lemercier, who is also an avid environmental activist, is deeply concerned with climate change and environmental destruction. His audiovisual installation in Pécs offers a journey between the past, present and future. COSMOS.1999 explores the profound contrast between the hugely popular and seductive visual aesthetics of the science fiction genre and the dystopian vision it embodies. The project offers a critical review to our general optimism associated with the advancement of modern technology.
The LIGHT ARTIST colony offers university students and young creative artists the opportunity to present their works and thus start participating in the national and international discourse of light-based digital artworks. During the preparation processes of the exhibition, exhibitors receive subsidy and mentoring for the fulfilment of their works. This key venue of the Zsolnay Light Festival is going to display more than 20 small and large works, which this year can also be interpreted as art historical stations.
In addition to works created using analogue photographic methods, visitors can walk a path through installations using the latest technologies, which is presented in the Ferenc Martyn Gallery and the courtyard in front of it. The central motif of this year is the concept of 'HOMMAGE Á PÉTER KOZMA' by ATTILA DOBOVICZKI, lecturer at the University of Pécs, which commemorates the recently deceased artist, one of the main organizers of Frankhegy party.
By means of including reflections by contemporary and young artists, this revival of the party culture of the nineties will function as a living archive. The party venue, complete with an indoor exhibition and outdoor light sculptures, will host DJ-VJ evenings, featuring the light course at the Faculty of Arts of the University of Pécs, led by MÁRTON KELEMEN.
