Many thanks to all of you who took the trip to Bergen Lights at Bergenhus Fortress!
Good visits and good feedback have given us motivation to continue working on an annual festival in January.
Many thanks to all the artists and content providers:
Pekka Stokke, 1001W and Fjell Festning Light Festival, Kunstpilotene, Ana Jorge, Francisco Munoz, Håkon Hoffart, Tijs Ham, S12 Galleri og Verksted, Litteraturhuset i Bergen and Northing.
Many thanks to all the volunteers!
Many thanks to our contributors:
Bergen Municipality, Sparebanken Vest and the BKK Group and to our partner: Forsvarsbygg and Vidar A. Stusdal Fyllingsnes.
Many thanks to everyone else who helped make this possible!
Bergen Kjøtt and Eva Rowson, Fløyen As, GC Rieber Eiendom, Bergen Live, Bergen Sentrum, Bergen Næringsråd, Flex Reklame, Martin Professional, Torbjørn Torsvik at PWC, Lars Ove Toft at BEK, Ivar Chelsom Vogt at Kulturhuset USF and Asle Bakke Brodin at Ekko Festival.
Thank you so much for the creative help from
Randiane Sandboe for lighting the entrance area and Sjur Aarthun for photo documentation.
And many thanks to our great staff:
Lillian Santos Herberg and Thomas Bruvik
See you next year!
Bergen Lights 2021 is supported by:
In collaboration with:
2021
LIGHTS AFTER ALL!
Outdoor light experiences at Bergenhus Fortress
Friday 22nd to Sunday 24th January
TIMES:
Friday, January 22 at 4:30 pm - 10:30 pm
Saturday, January 23 at 4:30 pm - 10:30 pm
Sunday, January 24 at 4:30 - 6:30 p.m.
PROGRAM
LIGHT ART, PROJECTS AND INSTALLATIONS:
Videoprojiseringer by Ana Jorge Patrøa, Francisco Munoz og Håkon Hoffart
“Refract / Recurse” by Tijs Ham og Birk Nygaard
“Music for Plutocracy” av Anne Katrine Senstad. Utstilling på S12.
CHILDREN AND FAMILY PROGRAMME
“Lux Animalia del 2” by Kunstpilotene
“Lantern festival” by Litteraturhusets “Lille Lørdag” and Northing
Bergen Lights 2021 is supported by:
In collaboration with:
Thank you:
S12, Bergen Kjøtt, Fløyen, GC Rieber Eiendom, Bergen Live, Bergen Sentrum AS, Bergen Næringsråd, Flex Reklame, Martin Harman,
Torbjørn Torsvik, Lars Ove Toft, Ivar Chelsom Vogt, Asle Brodin, Randiane og Jonas
METRIC UNIT
Pekka Stokke
Locations: Rosenkrantztårnet, Allé festningsområdet, Ved Kong Haakon VII statue, Plenen, Bontelabo, Koengen, Fløyen
"Relational aesthetics in art is about constructing a social experience, where the meeting between spectator / participant / random passer-by and the artwork is the point. The installation "Metric unit" will draw a new context, a new line, an aesthetic space which "the viewer can enter, in parallel with the physical city. The frames - in different sizes in different places - also reflects a new framework for social interaction in a pandemic. The gaze, the distance, the private zone."
Pekka Stokke
Pekka Stokke is an experienced stage artist, lighting designer, and video and installation artist. Over the past decade, he has built up a rich portfolio of public installations from his base in Trondheim and works both regionally and nationally. During Bergen Lights 20, Pekka contributed content to the water wall on Vågen, projected on a water wall from the fireboat Sjøbrand
During 2020, Bergen Lights has worked with Pekka Stokke to develop a project to across the city to characterize the festival's visual expression. We also wanted a project that could illustrate the "intermediate state" we are in right now; the current status to which we must relate. Several formats for this year's event were considered, but in the end we landed on locating everything in the Bergenhus fortress area - and the project was adapted to this viewing arena. The festival has collaborated with Stokke on the development of a series of frames which are now located in places that the festival wants to work with also in the future. The frames on Bontelabo and on Fløyen are placed to illustrate distances and the festival's desire to extend into the cityscape. The size of each frame is also made clear, so the audience can relate to the sizes.
VIDEOPROJECTIONS
Div. artists
Location: The Back of Håkonshallens
Bergen Lights wants to establish a project where video art is presented on facades in the urban space during the festival in years to come. This project is an experimental video projection, with the use of light as its main focus. During Bergen Lights 2021, we have invited three local artists to make their own video edit of between 3 and 5 minutes that will loop every night during the event period.
Multimedia artist Ana Jorge Patrøa, originally from Portugal, has for many years been involved in musical collaborative projects from her home in Bergen. With the help of an overhead projector and other creative devices, she has brought new theatrical expressions to the city's scenes and festivals.
For this year's festival, Ana has been asked to create a digital representation of her analogue distinctive expression. Using an overhead projector and various techniques, she creates abstract shapes, which she sounds with her own voice.
The renowned photographer, filmmaker and "alchemist" Francisco Munoz contributed in 2020 to the development of the festival's profile and to water projection on Vågen. Bergen Lights has invited Francisco to further develop this work and participate in this year's projection at the back of Håkonshallen. The video was recorded in Francisco's studios at Dokken. The cast is dancer Sara V. Esaian and the music is by Ralph Myers.
Håkon Hoffart
Håkon Francisco Hoffart is a visual artist, director and author from Oslo. Hoffart has for many years been an active producer of digital art, in particular memes, which are now estimated to have been seen by half a billion people. His art activities on the internet from 1995-2017 were documented over 50 pages in the "technological issue" of the magazine Fanfare, and this autumn he took over KODE 2 during Oktoberdans with a video installation and several performances that revolved around transhumanism and technology. For this year's programme, Håkon has been asked to make "video that is suitable for a light festival".
GLØD
1001W
Location: Behind the commander's residence
Photo from Fjell festning Light festival in Oktober 2020, Photo: Bjarte Wergedahl, Sotra Fotoklub
Light festivals are already a big trend all over the world, and around Norway a number of events are being established that use light as a medium in the dark season. Oslo has its festival and Bergen has its own. But you do not have to go further than our neighboring municipality to find a beautiful light festival. In the darkness at the back of Liatårnet, more specifically Fjell fortress, a group of idealists and artists have since 2016 worked with various, often site-specific, lighting installations. Bergen Lights wants to be the light festival that other light festivals look to, and this year invites the artists behind the festival to come to Bergen.
During Bergen Lights 2021, 1001W will present a new work they have worked on for the occasion.
"In these times - it is natural,
to pay tribute to the phenomenon of "glow".
Community and unity - the global glow.
Passion and drive - the inner glow.
Without "glow" no future.
With light we dribble around the span from the cosmos to the molecule of inheritance "
Geir Olav Sebjørnsen and Petter Bergerud
Petter Bergerud, Professor at the Faculty of Art, Music and Design at the University of Bergen, and Geir Olav Sebjørnsen, Exhibition Architect at Museum Vest, are both members of the lighting group 1001 Watt which runs Fjell Festning Light Festival.
REFRACT / RECURSE
Tijs Ham and Birk Nygaard
Location: Fjellveggen towards Sverresborg
Like many other festivals, Bergen Lights also has a dedicated staff that also consists of performers in the field. During this year's festival, the festival's Creative Director also chooses to set up a work in which he himself is directly involved. Together with the artist Tijs Ham, they have developed an outdoor version of their project "Refract / Recurse" for this year's event.
Since 2017, the duo has collaborated on this audiovisual project. The project is based on the show laser's technologies, and uses both sound and light produced by the laser. Through "redirection of sound" and fragmented laser beams, the duo creates an audiovisual experience where light and sound appear fused. An indoor version of the work has also been developed, and is poorly presented in the winter at the Echo Festival in Skostrædet.
Tijs Ham ('81) is a Sound Artist from the Netherlands working in the field of live electronic music and sound art. He is the co-founder of the 'Soundlings Collective' and has worked for the STEIM foundation as an artist, organizer as well as a member of their artistic board. In his art practice he focuses on chaotic processes and expression which is also the driving theme of his Artistic Research at the UiB.
Since the early 2000s, Birk Nygaard has worked with various expressions in video and lighting art. He works with the city, music and club environment and toured with large and small theater and music productions. In 2019, Birk was one of the driving forces behind what was to become Bergen Lights. He currently works as a creative director for the festival, at the same time as he runs his sole proprietorship from his studio at Bergen Kjøtt.
MUSIC FOR PLUTOCRACY
Anne Katrine Senstad
Exhibition at S 12 Galleri og Verksted
S12 Gallery and Workshop is an open resource centre for artists and designers who work with glass. They run their glassworkshop with highly qualified technicians and specialized equipment. Here they invite practitioners from all over the world. With Bergen Lights in mind, this year, as last year, S12 presents an exhibition during the festival's programme.
The exhibition of Anne Katrine Senstad's neon installation is open at S12 until March 28 and can be experienced as part of Bergen Lights. There will be a conversation with the artist on Saturday 23 January at 14:00 at S12. Extended opening hours during the festival period: 12:00 - 19:00
Anne Katrine Senstad
Senstad grew up in both Singapore and Norway. Today she lives in both New York and Oslo. She has her art education from institutions such as the University of California at Berkeley, the Parsons School of Design, New York and the New School of Social Research, New York.
LUX ANIMALIA
Kunstpilotene
Location: The Commander's garden
Welcome back to the world of luminous animals! On white paper “butterflies” you can draw, write and share your thoughts about the world. The butterflies are decorated and positioned among luminous animals on a separate butterfly globe at Bergenhus Fortress.
Together with the butterflies made in January 2020 in connection with the city’s anniversary, these new animals will be part of the art installation "Lux Animalia, part 2". We have set up infection-proof workstations with the necessary materials - and you can hang your butterfly on the "butterfly globe" when it is finished.
Workshop:Fri 22.01 og Sat 23.01 kl 16.30-19:30 (Sunday until 18.30)
Exhibition:Fri 22.01 og Sat23.01 kl 19:30-22.30 (Sunday until 18:30)
Anette and André Marandon
Participating art in city and nature.
The art pilots invite you into the co-creation and testing of surroundings and creativity.We set up temporary art camps where we can play, create and explore art.
LANTERNS
Northing and The House of Literature
Location: along the trail
Make your own lantern! The lantern festival is a Chinese tradition that can be traced 1800 years back in time. Lanterns are made not only for celebrations, and light up the darkin wintertime, but to tell stories and make light games. Do you want to make your own lantern that tells your stories?
Northing's lantern workshop was started by Litteraturhuset in Bergen and can be followed on the youtube link below. Young and old e participants can sit at home and make lanterns in their own comfort . If you have not picked up materials from the Bookstore, you can try to make your own model from what you have around you!
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Bring your lantern to the fortress on Friday 22 January from 16:30 and hang it up in a designated place in the fortress area! If you want, you can take your lantern home again on Sunday evening or Monday.
PS: All the lanterns have now been picked up and there are no more materials for this year.
Ben Wenhou Yu and Yilei Wang
Founded by architect Ben Wenhou Yu and designer Yilei Wang in Bergen, Norway, Northing is a multi-functional space with a focus on publication, design, music, cultural events and cross-cultural communication. Based in Bergen, Norway and with an East Asian cultural background, Northing is dedicated to promoting Norwegian culture among artists and designers to East Asia and the other way round.
The year 2020 began magnificently and promisingly with the opening of the city's 950th anniversary and the first implementation of Bergen Lights. Then it stopped. The city, and the world, were quarantined and cultural events became difficult to carry out. We switched to working and meeting digitally, and a lot of people and companies were harmed. In addition, we have experienced other disasters that characterize us at the beginning of the new year.
Right now we need light - and everywhere it is decorated with luminous hearts that indicate that life goes on and that "everything will be fine again".
Bergen Lights also emphasizes this - that we are in a state of emergency and that everything will be fine again in the end, therefore we invite you to a little corona-safe lighting experience at Bergenhus Fortress Friday 22 - Sunday 24 January, if the infection situation allows. Right now, outdoor events are allowed if the 1-meter rule is complied with, and we will abide by this until further notice.
The project "Metric Unity" by Pekka Stokke says something about the framework we must relate to, both in daily life and to be able to gather about common experiences. With red frames, we emphasize that we are in a difficult time, but a time that still is characterized by hope.
The framework for Bergen Lights 21 is Bergenhus Fortress, a central gathering place in the center of Bergen. Here we will present lighting works and activities by local and national actors.
Bergen International Light Festival will be an annual winter event. Arranging an outdoor light festival in Bergen at the end of January will always be challenging, but it will always be when we need it most.
We have received support from Bergen municipality, Sparebanken Vest and BKK, and collaborate with Forsvarsbygg and Litteraturhuset's "Little Saturday".
Thanks to artists and actors who make Bergen Lights 21 possible:
S12 Gallery and workshop, Kunstpilotene, Pekka Stokke, Ana Patrøa Jorge, Francisco Munoz, Tijs Ham
And thanks to Fløybanen AS, Bergen Kjøtt, Bergen Live for allowing Bergen Lights to be carried out this year as well.
Well met!