Lightscape Artists & Installations
The site-specific experience of last year's Festival is back and reimagined for 2024.
This globally renowned, multisensory phenomenon of light, colour and sound showcases Brisbane’s City Botanic Gardens in a new light, with breathtaking installations created by acclaimed local and international artists.
A special feature of Brisbane’s Lightscape will be two incredible sculptural installations created by Queensland First Nations artists Paul Bong (aka Bindur Bullin) and Michelle Yeatman.
This one-of-a-kind experience will immerse audience in an inspiring, after-dark journey along a 1.8km trail through the iconic City Botanic gardens. Wander beneath towering tree canopies illuminated in colour, stroll beneath larger-than-life flowers, alongside shining neon roots, and through dynamic glowing tunnels. Discover moments of wonder to share with everyone.
Lightscape is a global phenomenon — Brisbane, don’t miss your chance to be immersed.
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#Shields and Swords by Paul Bong
This work is presented in this format thanks to Shine On Gimuy Festival 2023.
Two large shields displaying the Scorpion totem, frame the entrance to the trail, and eight smaller shields and swords float in the trees overhead.
The shields are made traditionally from the buttress roots of the fig tree and painted with natural ochres from the area. Their designs represent the clans of Gimuy, and the one-handed swords are made from the hardwood tree.
The Shield and sword designs are a unique element of Yidinji traditional life. The totemic symbolism and design on each shield represents a family group and is associated with male initiation and coming-of-age ceremonial practices where the young warriors received a shield and sword.
Before the times of Captain Cook or European settlement, there was the large Slippery blue fig tree. It had a significant connection with the Yidinji people of the area and was sought out by the Elders for its soft corky wood. This wood was used for making shields because it was light and its fibres soft and spongy, so in battle the spears would not penetrate and they would bounce off.
The Elders gifted these shields to their young men who had the honour of painting them with their chosen designs. In the old ways the designs were painted with a mix of blood, oil, black charcoal and ochre producing white, yellow and red colours. The paintbrush was the frayed ends of the lawyer cane and the ochred designs had tangible and intangible meanings. For example the small black triangle shape, represents the scorpion which symbolizes courage, strength, and independence.
Artist: Paul Bong
Paul Bong, a Yidinji man, grew up around the Yattee area near Wright Creek in Far North Queensland. His art practices are inspired by the reclamation of stories and culture. His grandmother, who spoke Yidiny, taught Bong the ancestral stories about the rainforest – its bush food, animals, young warriors and special places such as Babinda Boulders and the Gordonvale Pyramid. These stories are the inspiration for many of his works.
#Winter Cathedral by Mandylights
This immersive, welcoming tunnel of warm light is equally spectacular when viewed from the inside or out. Inspired by arched church windows and appearing from a distance to be a single solid shape, the Winter Cathedral is illuminated by tens of thousands of LED light globes.
Artist: Mandylights
Since 2006, Australian lighting designers Mandylights have created incredible concert, broadcast theatre, special event, and light artwork experiences in over 50 countries around the world.
#Peonies by TILT
Six peony flowers stand over 6m tall along the trail path. Delicate and distinguished, each peony gracefully stretches out in a bouquet of three flowers, their finely cut white petals exposed to the sun. As night falls, these giant flowers light up with a thousand reflections revealing a dazzling palette of varied, every-changing hues.
Visitors are invited to sit around the flowers and enjoy the colourful ambience. Inspired by the works of Frank Depoilly, A Tir d’Ailes.
Artist: TILT
TILT is a French artistic studio created in 2001 that focuses on the exploration of light and its interplay with art, architecture and space. Their work encompasses all aspects of light art and is inspired by nature or everyday objects which are thought to create a dreamlike universe made of humour and poetry.
#Roots by Tony Simpson, Culture Creative
A kaleidoscope of coloured lights paint the roots and canopies of the garden’s celebrated fig trees.
Artist: Tony Simpson
Tony Simpson is Head of Lighting at Culture Creative and has worked as a lighting designer and practitioner across a wide spectrum of disciplines for thirty years. He has worked extensively as a theatrical lighting designer, as well as designing and running many large commercial projects in the live events industry, and designing and overseeing stage lighting for several feature films.
#Submergence by Squidsoup
Submergence is an immersive, walkthrough experience using many thousands of individual points of suspended light to create feelings of presence and movement within physical space.
The installation transforms space into a hybrid environment where virtual and physical worlds coincide. As you enter the piece, you walk into a space occupied by both real and virtual components, and you can affect both. The piece moves through several movements, which in its entirety, forms an abstract narrative with a gradual increase in tension, building to a final climax. Each movement has its own elements, atmosphere and responsiveness however they are also all open to one’s own interpretation.
Artist: Squidsoup
Squidsoup is a UK-based international group of artists, researchers, technologists and designers working with digital and interactive media experiences. Their work combines physical and dynamic digital spaces with novel and intuitive forms of interaction to produce immersive, responsive and beguiling experiences.
Squidsoup has exhibited across the globe at a broad range of events and locations, including Burning Man, Sydney Opera House, SIGGRAPH, Usina del Arte (Buenos Aires) Sundance (USA) and others.
#Meadow of Light by Lightworks
Approximately 10,000 twinkling fibre-optic blades of light, sway in waves of different colours down the hill.
Artist: Lightworks
Based in the UK, Lightworks has been creating award-winning site responsive lighting design, immersive light art and spectacular show pieces since 2013. Their work takes them all over; from rooftops to woodlands, military bases to museums where they specialise in blurring the lines between different creative media. Their mission is always to create experiences an audience will never forget.
#Electric Forest by Culture Creative
Soundtrack composed by Luke Daniel Peacock.
The Garden’s pre-historic forest of trees change colour in time to a bespoke soundtrack created by celebrated Brisbane-based artist Luke Daniel Peacock.
Artist: Luke Peacock
Luke Peacock is a descendant of the Meriam people of the Eastern Torres Strait Islands. More than just a solo artist, Peacock is also a member of a number of acclaimed Australian groups and has recorded, performed and toured across the world with some of the most revered and respected names in Australian and international music.
#Trapezoid by ArtAV
At 72m this multi-coloured tunnel will illuminate the path, fully immersing visitors as they pass through.
Artist: ArtAV
ArtAV is a UK based technical and creative studio with over 20 years of experience delivering unique audiovisual solutions. Their work features in theatres, live shows, and public events and their in-house workshops and electronics lab produces custom structures and electronics for temporary or permanent installation.
#Light Lines by Culture Creative
300 x 1 metre tall LED colour changing battens encircle the fig trees spreading waves of colour through the trees to create a dynamic light show.
Long swathes of light pulsate through rows of brightly lit battens in time to music. Light Lines was originally inspired by the digital waves represented on screen when checking audio levels or mixing dance tracks online.
Artist: Culture Creative
Culture Creative is a creative project and production management company based in England. The Company works across a wide range of cultural fields including art, sport, heritage, tourism, festivals and events, developing projects from concept to delivery. Since 2013 Culture Creative has worked closely with Sony Music to create Lightscape and Christmas themed trails in various venues across the UK and overseas.
#Fire Garden by Culture Creative and paBoom
Two x three-metre tall orbs each hung with sixty candles, interspersed with a formal array of candles on stakes, fill the lawn to create this year’s fire garden.
Artists: Culture Creative and paBOOM
paBOOM specialise in Fire Gardens for festivals and events and work with Culture Creative every year to create magnificent and contemplative fire gardens using their large-scale metal sculptures.
#Salt Water Pots by Michelle Yeatman
This work is presented in this format thanks to Shine On Gimuy Festival 2023.
The sand shells and saltwater of Yarrabah's beaches reflect a personal connection for the artist to country that shines through these nine large ceramic 'Jilgi' pots, ranging in size from 1m to 3m in diameter.
The pots are representative of our saltwater country and a reminder to us all of the value of water as a great healer, which cleanses, purifies, and like art is a blessing. In addition, the sea salt is believed to have a healing and rejuvenation quality and the different sizes of the pots are reminiscent of the moon cycles, symbolising the importance of observing tidal change.
Artist: Michelle Yeatman
Michelle (Mickey) Yeatman was born and bred in the Yarrabah community. She commenced employment at the Yarrabah pottery studio in 1982 as an apprentice mixing raw clay, but soon discovered her real love was in hand building pots. Influenced by Thanakupi, Michelle’s own particular style of applying various designs to the earthenware that she produces has distinguished her in the field of ceramics although she is also an excellent painter and print maker.
#Boardwalk by Tony Simpson, Culture Creative
A criss-crossing avenue of light, framed by bold colour-changing trees.
Artist: Tony Simpson
Tony Simpson is Head of Lighting at Culture Creative and has worked as a lighting designer and practitioner across a wide spectrum of disciplines for thirty years. He has worked extensively as a theatrical lighting designer, as well as designing and running many large commercial projects in the live events industry, and designing and overseeing stage lighting for several feature films.
#Palm Tree Rays Show by Tony Simpson, Culture Creative
A circular spread of different coloured beams of light create a magnificent linear rainbow.
Artist: Tony Simpson
Tony Simpson is Head of Lighting at Culture Creative and has worked as a lighting designer and practitioner across a wide spectrum of disciplines for thirty years. He has worked extensively as a theatrical lighting designer, as well as designing and running many large commercial projects in the live events industry, and designing and overseeing stage lighting for several feature films.
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