Aberdeen has been lit up with spectacular eye-catching art installations once again.
If you walk around the city centre this weekend, you are likely to come face to face with glowing plants, light-up animals and even a giant human sculpture.
The striking artworks, accompanied by enchanting music, will bring the Granite City to life as Spectra makes its much-anticipated return.
Scotland’s Festival of Light is back for its ninth year with thousands of people expected to hit the streets of Aberdeen to experience it for themselves across the next four days.
It will run between 6.30pm and 10pm each night until Sunday.
The popular event is delivered by Aberdeen City Council and created in collaboration with leading arts production Curated Place.
Alison Brodie, creative producer for Curated Place, said: “I’m so looking forward to seeing audiences enjoying all of the artworks. They’re all amazing pieces of art in their own right.
“Every year we get such great support from people and I’m excited to see all the spaces transformed, and how that makes people feel and react.”
Showcasing Union Terrace Gardens
Visitors are invited to get lost among the hypnotising light displays and enjoy a family-friendly evening full of activity.
One of the key sites for this year’s festival is the newly reopened Union Terrace Gardens.
At a special launch event at Aberdeen Art Gallery this evening, the council’s culture spokesman, Martin Greig, said it was a great way to showcase the space.
He said : “There is something for all ages in our brilliant festival of light. I hope that many will come into the city centre to enjoy the visions and have a great time exploring our wonderful city.
“The Spectra light show enhances and adds much to our splendid spaces, including Union Terrace Gardens.”
The entrance and steps down to the main garden space are dotted with illuminated plants and wildlife which lead to the impressive Luminosi Trees.
The soundscape which surrounds visitors in this area is based on the Fibonacci sequence of numbers which means it never repeats itself.
Interactive artwork
In the shadow of a giant humanoid sculpture sits Illumaphonium’s interactive installation, which gives people the opportunity to make their own music with hundreds of light-up chime bars.
Created by husband and wife pair, Michael and Gemma Mills, the musical artwork is making its Spectra and Scotland debut this week.
Mrs Mills said: “The installation is made up of tuned aluminum bars, tuned to a pentatonic scale, so everyone can play it.
“We want to bring people together to play, to create in a way they might not necessarily believe that they can, and reconnect with their childhood curiosity.
“Spectra is one that has been on our list for a long time, it’s really respected in the light art world, so it was great to be invited.”
Accessible art for all
This year, it features six Scottish premieres and three world premiere installations to add vibrancy and fun to the north-east.
As darkness falls over the city, people will be captivated by the story projections covering the walls of His Majesty’s Theatre and Marischal College – inspired by the migration of waxwings to Aberdeen and the freshwater spirit of Nokken.
Art duo Harriet Lumby and Alan Hayes, who work together as This Is Loop, have brought their impressive tunnel of twelve giant loops to Broad Street.
The installation, named Pulse, features 12 mirrored loops which offers audiences “an alternative way of seeing a familiar space”.
“It’s a study into light and time,” he said. “We wanted to make a piece that was easily accessible to people with free movement in and out of it.
“There seems to be two schools of people – those who want to stand and take it in from one end and then there’s lots of other people who want to walk through and be amongst it.”
Conversation