Nobel Week Lights (NWL) celebrated its 5th edition in 2024 and welcomed over 1 million local and international audience members into a 9 day light festival. Each light installation is inspired by Nobel Prize winning scientific discoveries, literature and peace-work.
Through artworks illuminating and transforming symbolic landmarks in the city’s power center, the festival inspires connection between the local audience and their hometown. This democratization of public space is made possible by the unique artistic perspectives of 36 artists from 12 countries, each transforming the winter darkness through the quality of their light installations.
The artistic program represented a diversity of mediums and forms within light art – from Eva Beierheimers’ site specific ‘Experiment’ integrated seamlessly into the iconic parade stairs of Sergels square to Niko Tiainen’s meditative ‘Translucens’, a water-screen projection creating an intervention of holographic minimalism in front of the Swedish National Parliament. NWL presents both early-career and established light artists, each piece showcasing various ways in which artistic visions can innovate on and transcend the technologies used.
Dedicated to community engagement, NWL had the privilege of working with two 5th grade classes from Husbygårdskolan, a school located in a socio-economically challenged area. Through workshops and labs with the Nobel Museum, Karolinska University teaching hospital – the NWL pedagogues guided students in the creation of a large-scale Bio-Art projection inspired by Alexander Flemming. The Children’s Artwork will become a tradition for the festival and within the school – leading to a long-term relationship and integration into the student’s educational journey.
Four artworks were created in collaboration with University students and shown in prime festival locations. Creating a professional springboard for the future careers of university students, this collaboration also introduces them, through hands-on experience, to the importance of lighting design and light art in public space. The festival collaborates with a variety of higher education programs (Architecture, Product Design, Lighting Design, Digital Creation).
NWL can be the first introduction for audiences to light art and lighting design in public space, and as such, the festival focuses on audience development and the creation of a ‘personalized-invitation’. NWL creates this by facilitating diverse entry points for individual audience members. 56 Guided tours are given in 8 languages (Swedish Sign-language, Arabic, English, Finnish, French, German, Spanish and Swedish) and over 15 outreach activities are designed to marry a range of interests and communities with activations within the festival.
NWL is a proud co-founder of the Lýsa Network, the nordic light festival network focusing on skill-sharing, sustainable event solutions and collaborative practices.
Nobel Week Lights is initiated, curated and produced by Annika Levin, Alexandra Manson and Lara Szabo Greisman (Troika AB). The 2024 Operations team was Hans Davis (Producer), Johannes Palmroos (Outreach Coordinator), Miranda Cohen (Artist Experience), Stephanie Agbo (Project Coordinator) and Alexandra Moran (Head of Security). The Production and Technical Advisor is Andreas Jakobsson (City of Stockholm Event Department). The Urban Lighting Strategy Advisor is Anders Hedlund (Traffikontoret). Nightline is the primary Technical supplier with Johan Pettersson as Production Leader.
