From gray to light: artists set the scene in Chemnitz

The light art festival "Light Our Vision" is set to return to Chemnitz at the end of September and aims to provide inspiration for future urban development. Up to 15 international artists are expected to impressively stage buildings and squares in the evening hours. According to the organizers, the Karl Marx Monument and the Opera House will be among the venues on an axis from the Red Tower to the Alte Aktienspinnerei.

The heart of the festival, however, is Marienplatz, emphasized Linda Hütter from the Baukultur für Chemnitz association, which organizes the festival. The area is located behind the large office complex at the Marx Monument and is awaiting urban development. It is currently used as a parking lot. However, there are ideas to develop the area into a sports and cultural campus, including a new venue for the Bundesliga basketball club Niners Chemnitz right in the city center.

"Non-places" to become places of light

This year's "Light Our Vision" will see walk-in portals created on Marienplatz, in which the visions of various people for their city will be processed into light installations using audio-visual and AI support. Children, urban planners, passers-by and cultural professionals were among those surveyed. Hütter explained that Urbanscreen from Bremen was responsible for the installation.

The festival, which is organized on a voluntary basis, is part of Chemnitz's programme as European Capital of Culture. It is now in its third edition this year. The aim is to rethink urban development and turn unnoticed "non-places" into "places of light" so that they become visible, emphasized Hütter. According to the organizers, the festival attracted around 75,000 visitors last year.