5 works of art you must see
1. Edwin Baruch: Gate of Light
As the first work of art on the route, Edwin Baruch’s installation is, as it were, a gateway to the festival. The light shines subtly through the gauzy ‘metal mesh’, creating a radiant gateway through which visitors can sail. The gate is so large that it almost looks like a projection from afar: intangible and fabricated.
2. Peter Vink: Bridge 242
The Amsterdam Light Festival is always looking for a connection between monuments. This work of art is the perfect example of this: the diagonal light strips on the Magere Brug communicate with the lamps on the opposite Amstel locks. Above all, from the water, the play of lights between the buildings forms a beautiful whole. Peter Vink has already made versatile editions of works of art for the Amsterdam Light Festival. Last year his installation on the Van der Velde bridge was a favorite for many.
3. OBBA: Light Wave
Officially, this installation is not just a light work of art: the forest of colorful vinyl paddles is just as spectacular today. The Korean collective OBBA is known for their surrealistic installations of everyday objects and materials. For this artwork they used moving paddles that change color with the light. They create a colorful shadow on the water and flutter happily in the wind.
4. Studio Toer: Bridge of 1000 dreams
For some light installations, makers have used the imagination of Amsterdam students and pupils. This work of art, for example, consists of a thousand bamboo sticks painted by students. They were asked to paint their dreams for themselves and the city. The focus was on preserving the monuments, quays and bridges that are in danger of disappearing. The drawings and texts light up and shine like a bridge over the water.
5. FOLD (Mingus Vogel and Justus Bruns): Bloomlight
You can communicate with this work of art. The five lanterns in the shape of a flower react to passers-by: they develop towards approaching visitors, unfold their leaves and start to shine. When leaving, the flower returned to its original position and the light goes out. A total of five lamps are available; two in the water for sailing visitors and three on the side for walkers. These interactive light artworks by Studio VOUW have already been used for theater performances.
The twenty works of art are arranged in and along the canals in the part of the center. The lights come on from 5pm to 11pm every day, with the exception of New Year’s Eve when the lights go off at 8pm.
Tickets are available in various forms. For example, visitors can join a boat (from € 26.50) with an audio tour of approximately 75 minutes. An alternative is the same tour on a saloon boat (from € 26.50), where a skipper tells more about the light artworks.
Furthermore, walking tours (from € 21.50) of 6.5 kilometers are organized, and a digital sailing and walking map (€ 7.50) is for sale for people who want to explore the Amsterdam Light Festival on their own.
More information on amsterdamlightfestival.com.
