The seventh Lux Helsinki light festival lit up downtown Helsinki in early January. Half of the artists behind the 17 installations were from Finland and the other half from abroad. “Also, half of the installations had already been seen in other parts of the world, while the rest had been specifically created for this event,” says Ilkka Paloniemi, the festival’s Artistic Director and Granlund’s Senior Consultant for presentation technology. The installations have always been selected using the same principle to ensure high quality.
The Teakon design unit, which is led by Paloniemi, transferred from the University of the Arts to Granlund in November. For the past three years Paloniemi has been the Technical Director of Lux Helsinki and this year he was selected as the Artistic Director.
Lux Helsinki is a free urban event that brings together locals and tourists. According to Paloniemi, the number of light events is growing in Finland and other countries. “There are similar events in at least Oulu, Tampere, Joensuu and Jyväskylä. The number of international light events is also increasing year by year,” he says.
Lux Helsinki has managed to attract more and more visitors every year. For example, in 2012 the festival attracted 50,000 visitors and in 2014 it had 150,000 visitors. This year the event brought over 200,000 visitors to the city center. Paloniemi recommends the event to everyone. ”Lux Helsinki has a lot to offer and the event is suitable for all ages,” Paloniemi explains.
Lux Helsinki is organized by the City of Helsinki and it is part of the UN’s International Year of Light 2015. The event also celebrated the 375th anniversary of the University of Helsinki as well as the 20-year history of light-themed events in Helsinki. This year the event partners were Red Green Blue RGB Oy as well as Finland’s Slot Machine Association RAY and Metro Helsinki.
The Lux Helsinki installations were on display from 4 to 8 January in and around Senate Square as well as Kansalaistori.
Further information:
Ilkka Paloniemi
Senior Consultant
Presentation technology, Teakon
Granlund Oy
Tel. +358 50 500 4141
firstname.lastname@granlund.fi
Picture: Lux Helsinki, Marcos Viñals Bassols
