Alexandre de Betak unveils Chashitsu Hikari Schürli during Gstaad Art Week, a light installation set inside a traditional Swiss barn in the Bernese Oberland. The project treats light as primary material, structuring space through reflection, absence, and modulation. The artist reveals spatial conditions already latent within the rural structure, transforming the barn into a perceptual environment shaped by shadow, mirror, and movement.

The project draws a conceptual line between the schürli, a small Alpine farm shed, and the chashitsu, the highly codified Japanese tea ceremony space. Although geographically distant, both share an economy of means, material honesty, and logic shaped by ritual, climate, and restraint. The work neither replicates the tea house nor reconstructs the farm shed. The artist distills their shared sensibility using light, which becomes the mediating element through which these traditions intersect.

all images by Jack Orton

vernacular barn as perceptual laboratory

Installed inside a pre-industrial agricultural building, the work occupies two levels of the existing barn. Its raw timber structure and utilitarian proportions become part of the experience. Mirrors fracture and extend the architecture, multiplying beams and voids, while natural and reflected light destabilize orientation and depth. As viewers ascend and circulate, surfaces dissolve, volumes stretch, and boundaries become provisional. Reflection functions as a conceptual device, implicating memory, presence, and impermanence within the act of seeing. 

Since first visiting the region several years ago, the French artist has expressed a sustained interest in its rural architecture, its direct use of materials, and the way its volumes sit within the landscape. Chashitsu Hikari Schürli engages this vernacular heritage through contemporary artistic language.

Following a presentation in London during Frieze last fall, the Gstaad installation extends Alexandre de Betak’s research into immaterial artistic architectures. 

Alexandre de Betak unveils Chashitsu Hikari Schürli during Gstaad Art Week

the project treats light as primary material

mirrors fracture and extend the architecture

the artist reveals spatial conditions already latent within the rural structure

a perceptual environment shaped by shadow, mirror, and movement

since first visiting the region, the French artist has expressed a sustained interest in its rural architecture

the raw timber structure and utilitarian proportions become part of the experience

project info:

name: Chashitsu Hikari Schürli

artist: Alexandre de Betak | @alexdebetak

location: Bernese Oberland, Switzerland

occasion: Gstaad Art Week

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Installed in front of Amsterdam’s Het Scheepvaartmuseum, with NEMO Science Museum in the background, Whale Fall is a light installation by XYTOPIA translating the deep-sea ecological phenomenon of a whale fall into a spatial structure accessible to the public. The project was selected through a two-stage international open competition with more than 700 entries, organised by the Amsterdam Light Festival under the theme ‘Legacy.‘ Developed over eighteen months between Sydney, Beijing, and Amsterdam, the installation examines how legacy is defined and by whom.

The work references the biological process in which a whale’s body becomes a sustaining ecosystem on the ocean floor. This transformation serves as a conceptual framework for examining continuity, decay, and regeneration. Rather than presenting legacy as monument or static remembrance, the installation interprets it as a process of material and ecological transition.

By drawing parallels between oceanic micro-ecologies and broader planetary systems, the project situates human impact within extended temporal scales. The installation’s lighting sequence reinforces this reading: during the day, the structure appears as a skeletal steel framework; at night, it emits a uniform crimson glow. The shift in color and illumination marks a transition from structural exposure to atmospheric immersion, aligning the visual experience with the conceptual theme of transformation.

image by XYTOPIA

curved steel portal frames create Whale Fall’s rhythmic space

Whale Fall is composed of a sequence of curved steel portal frames forming an accessible corridor. The ribs, fabricated in raw steel, are dimensioned across varying heights and spans, creating a rhythmic spatial progression. The corridor is mounted on a ramped platform to ensure universal accessibility and allow close interaction with the structure.

The installation is aligned parallel to the adjacent waterway, enabling views from both land and boat tours. From the water, the tilted frames and layered ribs generate changing visual alignments as viewers move past, producing a parallax effect. The structural base was designed to accommodate alternative siting conditions, including buried foundations, surface-mounted platforms, or buoyant systems for water-based installation.

XYTOPIA studio adapted the material strategy to Amsterdam’s winter climate. The untreated steel surface is designed to withstand wet and cold conditions while maintaining structural integrity. Integrated lighting and concealed cable routes support a constant, low-glare crimson illumination calibrated for outdoor durability.

image by XYTOPIA

XYTOPIA translates the skeletal concept into robust installation

Site constraints informed the project’s development, including heritage waterfront regulations, restricted access windows, heavy boat traffic, and seasonal weather. Sightlines toward Het Scheepvaartmuseum and navigation routes shaped the alignment and staging sequence.

Engineering and fabrication were executed in partnership with local teams in Amsterdam. The structure was transported fully assembled on pontoons and positioned beside the museum during a coordinated night operation, minimising disruption to the city’s infrastructure. The delivery required the temporary opening of a rail bridge at 3:00 a.m., allowing the installation to reach its final position via canal.

The project integrates repeatable steel joints, jig-based fabrication tolerances, and accessible service points for maintenance. These measures translate the initial skeletal concept into a technically robust installation suited to public and climatic demands.

image by XYTOPIA

On 14 January 2026, XYTOPIA’s Whale Fall served as the setting for a water-based concert marking the entry into force of the Global Ocean (High Seas) Treaty. Pianist-composer Iris Hond and percussionist Gijs Anders van Straalen performed from a floating pontoon in front of the museum. The event was organised in collaboration with Greenpeace Netherlands and Het Scheepvaartmuseum.

The performance connected the installation’s thematic focus on ecological cycles and intergenerational responsibility with a contemporary policy milestone. By situating a cultural event within the installation’s illuminated structure, the project linked spatial design, public gathering, and environmental governance within a shared urban setting.

image by XYTOPIA

image by XYTOPIA

image by Janus van den Eijnden

image by Janus van den Eijnden

image by XYTOPIA

image by XYTOPIA

image by Gosse Bouma

image by Gosse Bouma

image by Gosse Bouma

project info:

name: Whale Fall
designer: XYTOPIA | @xytopia.design

lead designer: Xinyi Wang

event: Amsterdam Light Festival | @amsterdamlightfestival

location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

photographers: Janus van den Eijnden, XYTOPIA, Gosse Bouma

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom

The post whale skeletal light installation glows red for amsterdam light festival appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

DIVIDED is an illuminating installation by Spanish urban artist SpY presented during the Lighting Xi’an Festival 2025, China. The public artwork forms part of the artist’s ongoing investigation into the relationships between body, space, scale, and perception. The project examines how light and monumental form can reshape spatial experience and alter the reading of an urban environment.

The installation consists of a large luminous sphere rendered in red light and divided into two identical hemispheres that are positioned apart from one another. Each half is housed within a metal framework constructed from industrial scaffolding, a system commonly associated with temporary construction. In this context, the scaffolding operates as both a structural support and a visible component of the work, establishing a contrast between the rigid, cubic geometry of the frame and the smooth curvature of the spherical forms. This juxtaposition introduces a condition of containment, in which the sphere appears simultaneously revealed and restrained.

all images courtesy of SpY

in SpY’s DIVIDED installation, Light becomes the primary material

Monumental in scale, the installation establishes a direct spatial relationship with the surrounding environment and the human body. The work is experienced not only as an object in space but also as a spatial configuration that responds to proximity and movement. Visitors can pass between the two hemispheres, entering the gap created by the division of the sphere. This passage functions as a corridor of light, in which the viewer becomes positioned within the work rather than observing it from the exterior.

In DIVIDED, interaction is directed inward, emphasizing immersion and bodily engagement. The use of red light, recurrent in the artist’s recent projects, defines the atmosphere of the installation and contributes to a suspended spatial condition shaped by illumination rather than enclosure alone. The work reconfigures the site through light, scale, and movement, positioning perception itself as a central material. DIVIDED is part of SpY’s Earth series, which also includes Earth and Confronted. The series has been presented in multiple cities, including Madrid, Athens, Riyadh, and Ghent, and addresses themes of fragmentation, coexistence, and spatial confrontation through large-scale luminous installations.

DIVIDED by SpY at the Lighting Xi’an Festival 2025

a large red luminous sphere split into two identical hemispheres

the installation explores body, space, scale, and perception

monumental form and light reshape the surrounding urban environment

each hemisphere is supported by an exposed industrial scaffolding frame

red light defines the spatial atmosphere of the installation

light becomes the primary material defining space

scale blurs conventional references of distance and enclosure

project info:

name: DIVIDED
designer: SpY | @spy__studio

organizer: Xian Mixc
curator: Wavelength
event: Lighting Xi’an Festival

location: Xi’an, China

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom

The post SpY’s monumental divided sphere installation illuminates xi’an in bright red light appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Dan Flavin: Grids is on view at David Zwirner Gallery in New York, bringing renewed focus to a body of work by Dan Flavin that engages space through light with confidence and openness.

The exhibition gathers several grid installations first developed in 1976, presented here through careful re-creations of historic works. Installed directly into corners, the luminous sculptures become a fixed part of the gallery as walls, ceilings, and floors receive light as an active condition. The atmosphere of each room shifts, all while remaining unified by the straightforward presence of the simple fluorescent fixtures.

Dan Flavin’s fluorescent light shapes corners as active architectural elements | image © designboom

re-created works illuminate david zwirner gallery

From Dan Flavin’s earliest experiments with fluorescent lamps in the early 1960s, light served as a practical tool for shaping space. Over time, this approach grew more assured, and the grids reflect that maturity. Their geometry feels steady and deliberate, while color introduces warmth and variation that responds to the proportions of each room.

As curator Michael Govan notes, the grids stand among the most concentrated works the artist produced. Each piece balances vertical lamps facing inward with horizontal lamps facing outward. Color travels across surfaces through reflection, a condition which softens the edges of the gallery and invites exploration between its rooms.

the Grids establish clear geometry and flood each room with a wash of color | image © designboom

colorful grids in dialogue with one another

The first of Dan Flavin’s grids on view, ‘untitled (for Mary Ann and Hal with fondest regards) 1 and 2’ (1976), offer a clear entry point. Each eight-foot square combines pink and green lamps arranged in opposing directions. Installed diagonally across from one another, the works establish an easy rhythm between corners, encouraging visitors to notice how light behaves differently as distance and angle shift.

Grids dedicated to Leo Castelli continue this dialogue. In ‘untitled (for you, Leo, in long respect and affection) 1 and 2’ from 1977, Flavin introduces yellow and blue alongside green and pink, allowing color interactions to feel more relaxed and expansive. Smaller four-foot versions, intended to be suspended across corners, suggest an architectural element that floats within the room, extending light into shared space.

Dan Flavin: Grids concludes with the re-creation of ‘untitled (in honor of Leo at the 30th anniversary of his gallery),’ first shown in 1987. Spanning twenty-four feet across a corner, the joined editions stretch the room laterally, offering a generous sense of scale.

corners become zones of exchange between inward and outward facing fixtures | image © designboom

walls, ceilings, and floors register light as a spatial condition rather than a surface effect | image © designboom

re-created works reflect how Grids were originally presented during Flavin’s lifetime | image © designboom

color interactions shift with distance, movement, and angle of view | image © designboom

scale varies from intimate eight-foot works to expansive multi section installations | image © designboom

the exhibition frames light as a practical tool for redefining interior space | image © designboom

project info:

name: Dan Flavin: Grids

artist: Dan Flavin 

gallery: David Zwirner Gallery

location: 537 West 20th Street, New York, NY

dates: January 15th — February 21st, 2026

photography: © designboom

The post ‘dan flavin: grids’ floods NYC’s david zwirner gallery with fluorescent color appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Biodegradable fireworks, light shows, and drones can offer an alternative and cleaner change to the future of traditional pyrotechnics. For hundreds of years, fireworks have meant loud bangs and bright colors in the sky as a way to mark celebrations, like New Year’s Eve, national holidays, weddings, and victories. But what happens after the fireworks fade? Our deep dive explores the current climate of traditional fireworks and the potential of the biodegradable ones alongside drone technology and light shows as cleaner alternatives. Chemically, traditional fireworks get their colors from metals: red from strontium, green from barium, and blue from copper. When these metals burn, they don’t disappear but turn into tiny metal particles that float in the air, making it dangerous to inhale, especially for those who suffer health problems and asthma.

While old fireworks were wrapped in paper, the modern ones often use plastic casings because they are cheaper and can hold the chemicals better. In this case, when fireworks explode, those plastics don’t burn up. They instead shatter and fall into parks, rivers, oceans, and fields, and over time, they break into microplastics, which create water pollution and harm the environment. Not to mention that since a single firework can be louder than 120 decibels, or as loud as a jet engine, the furry pets and other animals find the noise terrifying and threatening, even encouraging animals to change where they live and nest long after the shows are over, as seen in the case of Chinese artist Cai Guo-Qiang and Arc’teryx’s large-scale fireworks event in the Tibetan Himalayas.

image courtesy of Pyroemotions

biodegradable fireworks and light shows as pyrotechnics

Pyrotechnics can imagine a cleaner future, one that’s filled with biodegradable fireworks, drones, and light shows. For the former, they try to offer a solution to plastic waste and toxic smoke by using thick cardboard, paper bonded with starch glue, and clay plugs that turn into dust instead of burning metals. Companies like Chorlton Fireworks in the UK already sell biodegradable fireworks with mostly paper-based parts, which break down in soil in months instead of hundreds of years. Others are also testing bioplastics made from cornstarch, cellulose film, and other plant-based components that are non-toxic, including events companies Pyroemotions, Red Apple Fireworks, and KEDE New Material, but this area of pyrotechnics is still evolving. There’s a cleaner chemistry involved too when it comes to using biodegradable fireworks, drones, and light shows for pyrotechnics. 

Traditional fireworks use chemicals called perchlorates to explode, which are inorganic salts that dissolve in and can poison water and affect people’s thyroids. With the newer fireworks, they use nitrogen-rich fuels, and they can burn a bit cleaner, but they still mostly release nitrogen gas and carbon dioxide. They also use less metal for color, which means fewer toxic particles in the air. On top of this, many biodegradable and green fireworks remove the salute, the part that makes the big bang, and instead use softer bursts, let the sparks drift instead of explode, and stay around 70 to 90 decibels compared to the 120 from traditional fireworks. The downside is that these dubbed cleaner and biodegradable fireworks cost more because of the new materials; the cleaner components are much more difficult to make, and there are no big factories yet that can produce them at scale.

image courtesy of Pyroemotions

Drones light up the sky without explosions and noise

If not the biodegradable fireworks, the future of pyrotechnics can still glow without exploding at all. Here come the drones and light shows, posing as fireworks that fly instead of burst. Drone shows use hundreds or thousands of small flying drones with LED lights. Each drone is controlled by software, like a tiny robot actor in a giant sky theater. In some cases, the GPS tells each drone exactly where to go, the LEDs change color instantly, and computers plan their movements 100 times per second. Unlike fireworks, drones don’t make smoke, leave debris, and can be reused again. Some studios and companies are already leading this, such as Studio DRIFT in the Netherlands. 

Their drone project named Franchise Freedom, which appeared at Art Basel and Burning Man, among many others, moves freely in the sky as it glows and without exploding. Aerial production studio SkyMagic, as well as Verge Aero, has also used drones in their pyrotechnic shows, even bringing these flying devices to Super Bowls and Olympic ceremonies. On the other hand, drones can use lithium batteries, which are not healthy for the environment because mining lithium causes pollution. Unlike fireworks, however, drones can be reused many times and still offer less pollution, harm, and microplastics during celebrations.

Chorlton Fireworks sell fireworks with mostly paper-based parts | image courtesy of Chorlton Fireworks

Some designers, artists, and creatives even go further, using nature itself as the light source. Glowee, a French company, works with glowing bacteria found in the ocean, which naturally produce light without heat or electricity. The team grows them inside transparent containers filled with nutrients, and the result emits a soft, blue glow that produces no waste, uses no power grid, and is completely biodegradable, unlike traditional fireworks. At the moment, the company uses it for signs and installations, not sky shows, but it points toward a future where light doesn’t need fire at all. There’s also the Dutch artist Daan Roosegaarde, who created SPARK.

It is a show that looks like fireworks made of floating stars. Instead of explosions, it uses tiny biodegradable bubbles, light and wind, and human movement. The result is participatory in nature, silent for the environment, poetic in concept, and leaves nothing behind, allowing the artist to describe it as ‘organic fireworks.’ Some studios allow these future-oriented pyrotechnics to happen around instead of above us. Take the Canada-based Moment Factory, which creates immersive night experiences instead of short shows. Their Lumina Night Walks turn forests and parks into glowing stories using light projections, sound, and storytelling, and the project invites visitors to walk slowly through these illuminated spaces without smoke and explosions; just light and time.

AURA Église Saint-Roch, 2025, Québec City | image courtesy of Moment Factory

Still, companies use traditional fireworks during pyrotechnics shows, but a few of them have started modifying the program. Groupe F, who’s famous for shows at the Eiffel Tower and Burj Khalifa, now mixes fewer fireworks, more drones, and additional projection mapping and live performers to complete their shows. The others, however, are still yet to take their steps towards a cleaner alternative. When it comes to regulations, fireworks are mostly guarded for safety, not the environment. They’re legal in the US, except in Massachusetts, which imposes a complete ban, and in the EU, the use of chemicals has restrictions, but the label ‘green’ fireworks is yet to be discussed.

While fireworks are not disappearing, they’re slowly changing and evolving as the environment faces their consequences. Pyrotechnics imagine a future where these celebratory means burn fewer metals, use more biodegradable and low-noise ones, and incorporate more drones, lights, and immersive experiences into the shows. These alternative and biodegradable ones are yet to be scaled and commercialized due to their cost and question of material resource, but thanks to the active creatives making the shift – like Studio DRIFT, Roosegaarde, SkyMagic, and Moment Factory – the future of pyrotechnics can light up the environment quietly, cleanly, and still brightly.

AURA Église Saint-Roch, 2025, Québec City | image courtesy of Moment Factory

Wind of Change by Studio DRIFT | image courtesy of Studio DRIFT; photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of DCT Abu Dhabi

drones can also be an alternative to biodegradable fireworks and pyrotechnics | image courtesy of Studio DRIFT; photo by Lance Gerber, courtesy of DCT Abu Dhabi

Franchise Freedom by Studio DRIFT | image courtesy of Studio DRIFT; photo by Ossip van Duivenbode

Glowee works with glowing bacteria, which naturally produce light | image courtesy of Glowee

image courtesy of Glowee

project info:

companies and studios: Chorlton Fireworks, Pyroemotions, Red Apple Fireworks, KEDE New Material, Studio DRIFT, SkyMagic, Verge Aero, Glowee, Moment Factory, Groupe F | @chorltonfireworks, @pyroemotionsltd, @redapplefireworks, @studio.drift, @skymagicdroneshows, @vergeaero, @weloveglowee, @momentfactory, @groupe.f

artist: Daan Roosegaarde | @daanroosegaarde

The post are biodegradable fireworks, light shows and drones the clean alternatives to pyrotechnics? appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

For Noor Riyadh 2025, designboom spoke with curatorial lead Mami Kataoka, and curators Sara Almutlaq and Li Zhenhua to understand how they shaped the fifth edition of the world’s largest light art festival. Their collective vision traced a journey along Riyadh’s metro line, from historical districts to contemporary transit hubs, turning the city into a living canvas where art became accessible to all. Through their perspectives, the theme ‘In the Blink of an Eye’ emerged not only as a reference to light and speed, but also to the city’s rapid transformation and its deeper cultural timelines. The curators describe the festival as a public encounter with memory, imagination, and everyday life, revealing how light can connect communities across generations and geographies.

Troppo Fiso! by Traumnovelle | all images courtesy of Noor Riyadh 

from historical sites to the most updated metro stations

The curatorial narrative began in Qasr Al Hokm, the birthplace of Riyadh. Here, contemporary artworks responded to centuries-old architecture and textured urban memory, inviting reflection on the city’s origins. The curators approached the site with sensitivity, ensuring that new interventions remained in dialogue with the mud-brick structures rather than competing with them. This opening chapter grounded the festival in Riyadh’s historical depth, offering a counterbalance to its accelerating urban development.‘I think it’s very well interwoven to move through a landscape that spans historical sites to the most updated metro stations. It really shows different ideas of time and different ideas of light, and by bringing artists from different regions, everyone brings a different approach to the concept,’ Mami Kataoka explains, discussing the importance of this layered approach, stating.

Meanwhile, Sara Almutlaq reflects on the emotional tone of this first site, stating that ‘the first site is really the most historic one—it’s the birthplace of the city. It was built in the 1930s and is where King Abdulaziz used to live. In terms of the artworks here, there’s a sense of longing for the past that shapes how people experience the space.’

From a commissioning perspective, Li Zhenhua emphasizes the importance of letting the site lead: ‘We have to think carefully about balance – what kind of artwork belongs in each place. With this location, we visited together as curators and felt it was a beautiful space. We wanted artists to respond with new ideas, because many of the works are new commissions, and the festival proudly includes a lot of them.’

The Vision Grid by Vali Chincisan

‘curation is understanding how people move through each place’

The Noor Riyadh journey continued at the King Abdulaziz Historical Center, home to the National Museum and the country’s archival memory. Positioned between past and future, the site became a space for artworks that explored belonging, record-keeping, and cultural continuity. Here, light operated as a medium that revealed, preserved, and transformed collective narratives. M.Kataoka frames this duality as central to Riyadh’s identity, explaining that, ‘the festival speaks to a fast-growing, developing city like Riyadh and Saudi Arabia, but at the same time there is an ancient history and an ancient sense of time. The coexistence of Islamic time and the Gregorian calendar already creates a duality that people live within every day.’

‘When you hop onto the metro, you move into the future and arrive at the King Abdulaziz Historical Center. Built in the 1980s, it houses the National Museum and is really the archival powerhouse of the nation. The artworks here explore ideas of memory, belonging, and archive,’ says S. Almutlaq, situating the site within the festival’s larger journey. For L. Zhenhua, curation at this stage is deeply tied to spatial awareness: ‘Curation is about understanding each place—how people move through it, how the architecture shapes experience, and what kind of work should be there. It’s about contextualizing the artwork and making sure each piece is thoughtfully situated.’

The Light To Home by Zhang Zengzeng

The final movement unfolded at stc Metro Station, where the festival turned toward Riyadh’s technological horizon. This site showcased works that use drones, projection mapping, kinetic systems, and algorithmic design—immersing visitors in an environment shaped by speed, networks, and digital perception. For the curators, situating art in an active metro hub ensured the festival met people where they are: on commutes, in transition, or moving between daily routines. ‘This light festival, and even the concept of ‘in the blink of an eye,’ is metaphorical. It can be about light, but it can also be about speed,’ describes M. Kataoka. ‘You finally arrive at the stc Metro Station, and it’s really a place where we’re looking at the future through technology. I love this site—it’s very close to me—because it allows you to see technology as an art form, used by a wide range of artists, both local and international,’ adds S. Almutlaq.

L. Zhenhua expands on how the theme translated into lived experience, sharing that for him, ‘In the Blink of an Eye can mean a millisecond, a second, or ten years. We shouldn’t say, “This is art, you have to look at it.” You can close your eyes and still enjoy the moment—feeling the light coming from above, shining on you.”

Le Silence Des Particules by Guillaume Cousin

Across all locations, interactivity became a defining curatorial tool. Many artworks invited people to move, sense, or even shape the installation’s behavior, emphasizing that public art is not something to be looked at from a distance but something to be felt. For the curators, participation strengthened public ownership of the festival and transformed artworks into shared social experiences. ‘There are many interactive works where you can actively engage. It’s not something you’re disconnected from—you can relate to the work, understand it better, and think about how you contribute to change, rather than only watching it happen,’ exclaims M. Kataoka.

Working with heritage sites adds another layer of complexity. S. Almutlaq addresses this tension directly saying that ‘There’s always a balance when working with historical sites. You need to respect the buildings and their history, while still creating space for contemporary artworks. That balance is both the challenge and the strength of working in these locations.’ Meanwhile, L. Zhenhua highlights how technologically driven works can remain deeply human: ‘Even works that appear purely technological often talk about particles, community, and invisible things around us—things that usually go unseen, but are made visible through light.’

Intersections In Light and Sound by Edwin van der Heide

Throughout their conversations with designboom, the curators emphasized that ‘In the Blink of an Eye’ refered not only to immediacy but to long-term transformation. Riyadh is developing at extraordinary speed, yet the festival positions this moment within a broader cultural arc – one that values heritage, time, and collective memory. ‘This is a very interesting moment for Riyadh and Saudi Arabia, with so many new festivals, museums, and artists emerging at once. It’s a good moment to think about where you want to be in ten or twenty years. For me, this is a 10–20 year project.’ Mami Kataoka states. ‘It’s really a movement from the birthplace of the city toward its technological future, following the metro line as a narrative thread,’ says Sara Almutlaq, framing the festival as an urban journey.

‘We can’t stop the fast-changing world and lifestyle, but we should be aware of it. “In the blink of an eye” puts the human back at the center—it’s about choice, awareness, and presence,’ concludes Li Zhenhua, reflecting on the human dimension of rapid change.

Center by Ivana Franke

Keep your Eyes On The Light by Fatima Abdulhadi

Clockwise Invitations by Alex Schweder

Petrichor by Robert Seidel

The Shadow Within by Ziyad Alroqi

Aura_Photo by atelier oï + WonderGlass

Cosmic Birds by Shun Ito

In Light Together by Alexandra Gelis

REDUKTOR by Tonoptik

project info:

name: Noor Riyadh 2025 | @noorriyadhfestival

organization: Riyadh Art

curation: Mami Kataoka, Li Zhenhua, and Sara Almutlaq

dates: 20 November – 6 December, 2025

location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

The post how the curatorial team of noor riyadh 2025 turned the city into a journey of light and time appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

From 20 November to 6 December 2025, Noor Riyadh, the world’s largest light art festival, returned with over 60 installations by 59 artists from 24 countries, presented across six major sites including Qasr Al Hokm District, King Abdulaziz Historical Center, stc Metro Station, KAFD Metro Station, Al Faisaliah Tower, and JAX District. Curated by Mami Kataoka, Sara Almutlaq, and Li Zhenhua, the 2025 theme, ‘In the Blink of an Eye,’ reflected Riyadh’s rapid transformation and positions the festival as a platform for public participation and artistic experimentation. In an exclusive interview with designboom, Noor Riyadh’s director Nouf Almoneef, takes us into a journey of light and art, touching on the festival’s mission to bring art to the people by making it accessible in everyday life and creating meaningful, memorable moments for everyone who engages with it.

‘Noor Riyadh is now in its fifth edition, and what keeps it meaningful is how deeply it belongs to the people of this city. We built it as a platform for creativity – for artists and for audiences who wanted to see themselves reflected in the works. Every year we rethink the locations so that art becomes part of daily life, whether that means placing installations in historic courtyards, public gardens, or metro stations. Our mission is always to bring art closer to the people,’ begins Nouf Almoneef, Director of Noor Riyadh.

Between the lines by Abdelrahman Elshahed | image © designboom

‘making Riyadh one of the world’s most livable cities’

Noor Riyadh’s most defining quality is its accessibility. By distributing artworks across historic zones, cultural districts, and newly launched metro stations, the festival transforms Riyadh into an open-air gallery. The curatorial strategy ensured that encounters with light art happen not only in traditional art venues but within places of everyday movement, commuter corridors, public plazas, pedestrian routes, and family gathering areas. This approach aligns with Riyadh Art’s long-term mission to integrate creativity into the capital’s urban fabric and create ‘everyday moments of joy,’ a principle emphasized across the program’s strategic documents.

‘By choosing different locations each year – parks, heritage sites, gardens, metro stations – we create a network of public spaces that are connected through light; this is how we make the festival accessible. That sense of belonging is essential to our vision of making Riyadh one of the world’s most livable and creatively engaged cities,’ continues Nouf.

Liminal Space Air-Time by Shinji Ohmaki

the six locations create a geographic journey through riyadh

Beyond its large-scale installations, Noor Riyadh sustains a citywide public program that includes workshops, talks, performances, and family activities such as Printed Stories, Dancing Threads, and Stories from the Shadows—all designed to engage audiences of different ages and backgrounds. This community-driven programming complements Riyadh Art’s broader achievements, which include over 6,500 community engagement activities and 9.6 million visitors since launch. By inviting residents not only to observe but to participate, Noor Riyadh positions public art as a shared civic experience rather than a spectacle.

The 2025 theme, ‘In the Blink of an Eye,’ reflected Riyadh’s rapid evolution from heritage sites like Qasr Al Hokm to the sleek infrastructure of the newly launched metro network, showcased in festival documents as symbols of the city’s forward momentum. The artworks amplified this narrative: kinetic sculptures visualize movement, light projections reframe architectural history, and metro-based installations mirror the rhythms of urban life. Together, the festival’s six locations created a geographic journey through Riyadh’s past, present, and future.

‘We chose locations that reveal how the city is expanding – its heritage districts, its cultural centers, its futuristic metro lines. When visitors move between these sites, they experience the story of Riyadh itself: a place honoring its past while building bold new futures. For many people seeing these changes, the artworks help make sense of the transformation by offering moments of reflection within the movement.’

Sliced by Encor Studio | image © designboom

As part of Riyadh Art, one of the four original Vision 2030 mega projects, Noor Riyadh plays a pivotal role in shaping the cultural infrastructure of the capital. Permanent installations, educational programs, and public-realm activations continue to expand the city’s creative footprint. The festival’s long-term legacy lies not only in its scale or global recognition but in how it fosters civic pride, cultural exchange, and everyday access to creativity.

‘I think Noor Riyadh after 2025 has already been recognized internationally and locally, but recognition is not our only goal. What we want is to create meaningful, memorable moments for people, for visitors, for artists, for curators, for residents. As Riyadh continues to evolve, Noor Riyadh will grow with it, building stronger connections between communities and art. This is how we imagine the future: a city where creativity is a shared language, part of daily life, and part of who we are becoming,’ concludes Nouf Almoneef.

Light Float Down Like A Feather by Wang Yuyang

Atmospheric Seeing by Studio Above&Below

Between Light and Stone by Nebras AlJoaib

Center by Ivana Franke | image © designboom

Synthesis by László Zsolt Bordos-Christophe Berthonneau | image © designboom

Troppo Fiso! by Traumnovelle

Luna Somnium by Fuse | image © designboom

event info:

name: Noor Riyadh 2025 | @noorriyadhfestival

organization: Riyadh Art

curation: Mami Kataoka, Li Zhenhua, and Sara Almutlaq

dates: 20 November – 6 December, 2025

location: Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

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Emirati artist Shaikha Al Mazrou presents The Contingent Object at Manar Abu Dhabi 2025, a public light art exhibition unfolding within a coastal landscape shaped by mangroves and tidal air.

Sited close to water, the luminous work takes the form of a circular salt field measuring roughly thirty meters across. The installation registers time through material change. Seawater settles into a shallow plane, and as heat and wind take hold, evaporation thickens the surface. Color intensifies, crystals begin to assemble, and a pale crust develops along the edges. What begins as a calm liquid state gradually compacts into a dense, reflective plane, carrying the imprint of climate and duration.

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Shaikha Al Mazrou uses Material as Process

Creating the Contingent Object, artist Shaikha Al Mazrou, employs salt as both medium and indicator. The material’s responsiveness to environment gives the piece a living quality, shaped daily by light levels, humidity, and shifting temperatures. The ground plane remains precise in geometry, yet its surface resists exact repetition. Fine variations accrue across the circle, producing subtle tonal gradients and textures that register up close before resolving at scale.

After dusk, a restrained lighting system activates along the perimeter and beneath the salt plane. The illumination stays low and even, allowing the circle to hover visually above the ground. Approached on foot, the work reveals itself gradually. The surrounding darkness compresses attention toward the illuminated edge, creating a measured spatial rhythm that encourages slow movement and extended viewing.

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Light, Landscape, and Duration

Within the broader context of Manar Abu Dhabi, The Contingent Object participates in a city-scale conversation about light, site, and public access. The biennial brings together installations that engage outdoor settings through restraint and technical precision. Our recent coverage of DRIFT’s installation for Manar Abu Dhabi, which translated motion and aerial choreography into a shared nocturnal experience, offers a point of comparison rooted in light as a spatial tool rather than an effect-driven gesture.

Shaikha Al Mazrou’s approach remains grounded in physical transformation. Light plays a supporting role, tracing the boundary of the work rather than overtaking it. The glow frames the salt field and reveals the incremental shifts in its surface, reinforcing the idea of duration as a central design parameter.

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Shaikha Al Mazrou, Contingent Object, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi

project info:

name: Contingent Object

artist: Shaikha Al Mazrou | @shaikha.almazrou

location: Abu Dhabi, UAE

photography: © Lance Gerber | @lance.gerber

festival: Manar Abu Dhabi 2025 | @publicartabudhabi

theme: The Light Compass

dates: November 15th, 2025 – January 4th, 2026

The post shaikha al mazrou creates light art from crystallized seawater at manar abu dhabi appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Relic installation for Noor Riyadh in Saudi Arabia builds on Karolina Halatek’s previous site-specific piece in Metz, redefining the concept of a monument. The pyramid-shaped structure emits a sky-tracing beam of white light through mist and mirrored surfaces, creating a serene gathering place. As visitors approach the sculptural composition, they are reflected, illuminated, and transformed. The public artwork invites each person to acknowledge their own presence and significance, momentarily becoming a living monument and an active participant in co-creating history. Combining modern aesthetics and technology with evocative form, Relic serves not as a historical tribute but as a participatory space for reflection and transformation.

a pyramid-shaped structure emits a vertical beam of white light | image courtesy of Noor Riyadh Festival

Karolina Halatek Reimagines Monument as interactive Experience

Karolina Halatek’s works are catalysts for experience. Using light as her central medium, she creates site-specific installations that integrate visual, architectural, and sculptural elements. She studied Design for Performance at UAL (UK), Fine Arts at UdK Berlin, and Media Art at the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw, Poland, and took part in Olafur Eliasson’s Institut für Raumexperimente. The Polish artist is a PhD candidate at the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow and a visiting researcher at the Lighting Lab, Royal Danish Academy in Copenhagen. The installation was produced by TETRO+A agency and exhibited at the fifth edition of the Noor Riyadh festival titled ‘In the Blink of an Eye,’ Saudi Arabia, 2025.

mist and mirrored surfaces frame a sky-tracing column of illumination | image courtesy of Noor Riyadh Festival

the piece encourages collective engagement and shared experience | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

the installation forms a quiet gathering point within the festival | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

light and mist subtly transform each person entering the space | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

the work invites visitors to recognize their own presence | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

participants momentarily become part of a living monument | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

Relic blends contemporary aesthetics with technological precision | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

the work acts as a participatory space rather than a traditional monument | image courtesy of Karolina Halatek

project info:

name: Relic for Noor Riyadh

artist: Karolina Halatek | @karolinahalatek

location: Qasr Al Hokm Metro Station, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

materials: steel, stainless steel, acrylic

dimensions: 300 x 600 (base diameter)

event: Noor Riyadh Festival | @noorriyadhfestival

production: TETRO+A | @tetro_agency

special thanks to: Nouf Almoneef | @nouf.almoneef, Riyadh Art | @riyadhartofficial, Matthieu Debay | @mattdebay, Nicolas Roziecki | @hyvn, Matteo Messina | @mttmex, Adrien Jolivet | @adrisocialbot, Gabriel Ducolombier | @rielgabzz, Lavínia D. Freitas | @lavinfreitas, m5iw | @m5iw

designboom has received this project from our DIY submissions feature, where we welcome our readers to submit their own work for publication. see more project submissions from our readers here.

edited by: christina vergopoulou | designboom

The post reflective pyramidal monument emits sky-tracing beam of white light in saudi arabia appeared first on designboom | architecture & design magazine.

Skyward by Ezequiel Pini, the artist and designer behind Six N. Five, glimmers within the landscape of Manar Abu Dhabi 2025 as a composed encounter between material density and reflected atmosphere. The public artwork begins with a single gabbro stone extracted from the UAE town of Ras al Khaimah, positioned so its dark surface absorbs the desert sun while revealing fine variations in texture. Its presence feels anchored to geological time as it was first shaped by natural forces and then by weeks of hand refinement.

Across from the stone, a illuminated mirrored plane of digital art introduces an entirely different register. The surface gathers the sky and returns it to the ground, creating a shifting field that responds to weather, hour, and the quiet movement of visitors. This pairing forms the basic spatial rhythm of Skyward, one element rooted in the earth, the other oriented toward the open expanse overhead.

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

six n. five sculpts with stone and shimmering light

Six N. Five‘s placement of the monolith and mirror frames a passage that draws visitors to Skyward through a measured sequence. The gap between them serves as a calibrated threshold, where the mass of gabbro stone meets the immaterial clarity of reflected light. Ezequiel Pini’s work often dwells on elemental contrasts, and here the installation translates those interests into a built environment.

Digital projections shimmer across the mirrored surface, guided by constellations associated with Abu Dhabi. These animated sequences bring a sense of quiet movement to the installation, echoing traditions of navigation shaped by star patterns across desert and sea. The effect remains grounded in architectural experience: visitors read the surface at scale, observing how light behaves across its height and how the projection alters their perception of depth.

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

engaging abu dhabi’s desert landscape

As the sun shifts, Six N. Five’s Skyward mirror serves as an inclined horizon, folding portions of sky into the visitor’s field of view. This creates a subtle reorientation, encouraging upward attention while still maintaining a strong relationship with the ground plane. The installation’s alignment within the desert setting amplifies this effect, giving Skyward a steady presence amid open terrain.

The stone’s handcrafted finish invites close viewing. Faint tool marks remain at certain edges, offering evidence of the labor involved and underscoring the contrast between permanence and adaptation. In relation to the mirror, the stone’s matte density stabilizes the composition, heightening awareness of the changes taking place across the reflective surface.

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

Ezequiel Pini (a.k.a. Six N. Five), Skyward, 2025. Manar Abu Dhabi 2025. image courtesy Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi & Public Art Abu Dhabi. photo by Lance Gerber

project info:

name: Skyward

artist: Ezequiel Pini (Six N Five) | @sixnfive

location: Jubail Island, Abu Dhabi, UAE

client: Department of Culture and Tourism Abu Dhabi, Public Art Abu Dhabi

completion: 2025

photography: © Lance Gerber © Stéphane Aït Ouarab / Saï

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