GLOW 2020: Light is Life

The annual GLOW light festival in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, is sending a message of hope to the world this year with the creation of the largest site- specific light artwork ever created. Entitled "Connecting the Dots", the epic illumination covers more than 80 km2 and comprises more than 1,500 LED lamps, 1,000 red dots of 90 cm diameter in the sky and more than 20,000 red dots behind the windows.

The artwork is being shown to the world on November 12 at 17:00 CET, when Eindhoven will be wrapped in an enormous mantle of blue light featuring 1,000 fixed and floating illuminated red dots. This cosmic looking image, is designed to remind us that light represents life and connects us all. Visible from the safety of people’s homes in Eindhoven and its surrounding areas, the light artwork will also extend to the skies with the blue and red glow visible from some 60 km in the air. People from anywhere in the world can tune in to the livestream to enjoy the illumination which is visible for an unspecified length of time.

Connecting the Dot

Connecting the Dots has three elements. The blue dome projected light above Eindhoven is a work by Finnish light artist Kari Kola, creator of the mountain illumination “Savage Beauty” in Ireland this year. Kari Kola gained particular recognition as a light artist in 2018 when he lit up the UK’s famous Stone Henge. The blue dome seeks a connection with nature and aims to create awareness for the planet. Dutch light artist Ivo Schoofs adds life with a sea of beautiful red dots floating throughout the city, spreading light inside and out. These dots – actually over 1,000 fully recyclable light balloons – symbolise the sense of connection that people need. As an extension of the idea, 20,000 of the city’s primary school children, inspired by Dutch designer Hugo Vrijdag, have spent the last few weeks making their very own red GLOWdots. The organisers hope the result will provide a much-needed reminder that none of us are alone in
this world.

From Eindhoven to the world

Every year, around 750,000 people visit Eindhoven for the international GLOW light art festival. During this, they can wonder at some of the most inspiring light-based art installations ever seen. But not this year. Like so many other cultural events, GLOW has been cancelled for 2020. Despite this, GLOW and the municipality of Eindhoven, which this year celebrates its 100th anniversary, wanted to do something for the city – and the world. “These times we cannot visit each other, work together in the office, play sports or go out, it is more important than ever to feel connected,” explained John Jorritsma, mayor of Eindhoven. The result is Connecting the Dots, a one-off magical moment that takes GLOW’s “light is life” spirit and repurposes it for one special edition.