A glowing underwater whale, a human aquarium and a gigantic installation inspired by the moon – these are some of the amazing sights delighting visitors to the Lightwaves festival at Salford Quays.
New artists nationally and internationally have brought their definition of light to Salford to celebrate the tenth year of Lightwaves.
The festival is filled with extraordinary pieces like Cetus founded by Berlin visual artists Loomland. A six metre-long underwater lit whale that dives and resurfaces, like an actual whale, and is covered in internal light that creates a shimmering, hypnotizing effect.
Glow by Amigo and Amigo, a gigantic light installation inspired by the cycles of the moon attracted many guests and was a definite site to see.
More meaningful and beautiful pieces like Suraj were also at the event.
The piece was co-created by a group of women in Rochdale and was inspired by the “sunshine in Pakistan” that made them feel safe.
The rise and fall of the sun inspired Akeelah Bertram and Parvez Khadir to make this piece.
The sound playing from the fixture comes directly from NASA’s recording of the sun.
The artistic director of the piece Parvez said: “Suraj is the Urdu translation of daylight, and it would always come up in our conversations with the Rochdale women we spoke to.
“They talked about how daylight was a gift in a spiritual sense and a faith perspective.”
Alongside this installation a lot of the designs attracted the visitors to the event, and many stood in awe of the radiating lights.
The most thought-provoking piece was the indoor Human Aquarium: Deep Water based inside Salford University’s MediaCity Campus.
Credit: by Zainab Anwar
After walking around in the cold, the warmth of the indoor fixture felt like a Christmas miracle.
Designed by Salford University digital artist lecturer Annabeth Robinson the piece “reflected the climate change.”
She said: “We wanted to recreate a deep-water immersive installation of animation, sculpture and soundscapes to show people the effects of climate change.”
The Lightwaves Festival is on until Sunday December 10.
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