Commission working with young people from Maribor, Slovenia to create a light installation proclaiming and celebrating human potential.
I was commissioned to collaborate with disadvantaged young people from Maribor, Slovenia to create a light installation for Maribor’s Winter Festival of Light.
The installation was developed through a series of workshops with the young people. I asked them to identify qualities that they felt they possessed when at their very best; helping them to think about the moments when they shine. We selected words to describe their best characteristics and made drawings to depict them. These words and images were then engraved into fluorescent Perspex, installed with LED lighting and suspended in a tree at the centre of the Jewish Square in the city. The low level bench around the base of the tree offered a softly illuminated space for reflection. Here people could sit and contemplate the inscriptions above; perhaps taking time to consider their own best qualities or reevaluating their perceptions of the young people whose abilities and aspirations are often overlooked.
When We Shine was commissioned as part of LUCity, a project spanning four European towns (Aveiro, Portugal; Bari, Italy; Maribor, Slovenia; Kirklees, UK). My work was one of 4 commissions in Maribor. The exhibition was in place for two months and received several thousand visitors.
Commissioned by LUCity
Funded by Creative Europe and Arts Council England
