The Light to Night festival is one of the highlights of Singapore Art Week (SAW) ever year, and this year it returns to the Civic District with a first-ever hybrid edition. Themed “______-in-Progress”, this marquee event takes festival-goers on innovative art experiences, both online and offline, in the hope of inspiring them to forge deeper connections with art in new ways.
Ms. Suenne Megan Tan, Festival Director and Director of Audience Development and Engagement at National Gallery Singapore says, “This year’s festival reflects the commitment of arts and cultural institutions in the Civic District to rally the public together in solidarity following a challenging year. In a new normal where everyone has had to adapt and make progress in the face of uncertainty, we are especially inspired by the resilience and creativity shown by the local arts community in response to the negative repercussions of the pandemic. As audiences engage with the festival line-up and create shared memories together, we hope they are similarly encouraged to move forward with a renewed sense of optimism in the new year.”
READ: Three One-day Itineraries to Explore the Singapore Art Week this Weekend
Ringing with hope and positivity, the theme calls on audiences to stand together in solidarity in this time of flux and create shared memories through art. Spearheaded by National Gallery Singapore, the festival’s exciting line-up includes newly minted programmes like Augmented Reality: National Collection Comes Alive where Augmented Reality (AR) technology brings paintings from the National Collection to your living room wall; and Art in Motion where public art installations by five contemporary visual artists fill our train cabins along the North-South and East-West lines.
READ: Local Art Meets Retail: Creative Unions at Funan
To broadening its support for the local arts community, the festival whose partnership with Art Skins were a mainstay for last four editions, has expanded its mentorship opportunity to students from three local tertiary institutes. Visitors will see the works of art and design students projected onto the facades of the Asian Civilisations Museum, The Arts House, and the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall after a successful collaboration with mentors in the creative and technical aspects of projection mapping.
Lighthearted initiatives also make an appearance as the festival looks to break down barriers to art through Instagram filters inspired by the National Collection available on Light to Night’s dedicated social media pages and a microsite which allows audiences to plan their festival visits at a glance and access its plethora of online programmes including artist talks, performances, and the festival forum by all Civic District partners and at-home AR experiences – all in one platform.
READ: Bus.Stop.Art – Reaching the Everyday Singaporean Through the Daily Commute
THG attended the festival this past weekend; watch the video for some of the sights we captured. Light to Night Festival runs until 31 January 2021, with activities ongoing from 10 a.m. until midnight daily. Onsite admission to the festival is free and it is held across various locations in the civic district including: National Gallery Singapore, Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, Asian Civilisations Museum, Asian Civilisations Museum Green, Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay, Padang, and the Arts House.
Join the conversations on THG’s Facebook and Instagram, and get the latest updates via Telegram.
