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The second edition of the Festival of Lights Ghent takes place in the town centre of Ghent from 26 January until 29 January 2012. Last year the free event drew no less than 200,000 visitors, both from Belgium and abroad. An overwhelming success that exceeded by far the organiser’s – the city of Ghent - highest expectations!
He who attended, surely remembers the Old Post Office building being transformed into a fairy tale with dancing monkeys, brushstrokes and a building stirred to life. Equally amazing were the playful luminous ducks on the water, a flower field of lights, the burning belfry tower and the experimental light shows along a 5-kilometre walking route full of light.
That there would be a next edition, was meant to be. At the urgent request of the public, this year’s festival is extended by one day. So a dazzling four-day show it will be. From Thursday 26 January until Sunday 29 January the city’s nights will again be the setting for a surprising spectacle, ingenious creations, spectacular performances and beautiful events, based on light.
This year the light festival’s theme is ‘Happiness’, which is not a coincidence since 2012 is the Maeterlinck Year in Ghent. On 9 November 1911 the Swedish Academy announced it was awarding the Nobel Prize for Literature that year to the author of Ghent origin, Maurice Maeterlinck. In 2011 it is exactly one hundred years ago, that Maurice Maeterlinck earned the highest literary prize and he still is the only Belgian writer to have received this honour. For a long time it remained unnoticed that his hometown Ghent played a distinct part in the evolution of his literary talent. In 1948 Maeterlinck publishing the charming Bulles Bleues, with memories of his childhood in his hometown Ghent.
However, it is the magical fairy tale “L’Oiseau bleu”, the Blue Bird, that broaches the subject of happiness. It is a story about the little girl Mytyl and her brother Tyltyl. They are looking for the Blue Bird, because a fairy has told them that the Blue Bird can cure the girl living next door. On their search they go through exciting adventures, however without success. When they arrive back home, they decide to give the girl their own white dove. And then something extraordinary happens: the white pigeon turns blue and the girl gets better. The moral of the story? By giving something of your own, you bring happiness to people’s lives. Artist participating in the Festival of Lights 2012 can use ”happiness” as source of inspiration for their creations.
Music, of course, also makes one happy. Recently, Ghent was honoured with the title of Creative City of Music , by UNESCO. So, in 2012 light and music go hand in hand. Musicians and light artists join efforts to create various and different light projects.
text by www.lichtfestivalgent.be
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Van 26 tot en met 29 januari 2012 vindt de tweede editie van Lichtfestival Gent plaats in de binnenstad van Gent. Het gratis te bezoeken evenement trok vorig jaar niet minder dan 200.000 bezoekers uit binnen- en buitenland. Een overdonderend succes dat de stoutste verwachtingen van de organisator Stad Gent ruimschoots overtrof!
Dit jaar wordt het festival trouwens met een dag verlengd. Een bruisende 4-daagse dus. waarin de Gentse nachten opnieuw het decor vormen voor verrassend spektakel, ingenieuze installaties, spectaculaire performances en mooie evenementen gebaseerd op licht.
Dit jaar heeft het lichtfestival als thema ‘Geluk’. Niet toevallig want in 2012 viert Gent het Maeterlinckjaar. Op 9 november 1911 verleende de Zweedse Academie de Nobelprijs literatuur voor dat jaar aan de auteur van Gentse origine Maurice Maeterlinck. Hij blijft tot vandaag de enige Belgische schrijver, die deze eer te beurt viel.
Van muziek word je natuurlijk ook gelukkig. Gent werd recent nog door UNESCO uitgeroepen tot Creative City of Music. In 2012 reiken licht en muziek elkaar dan ook de hand. Muzikanten en lichtkunstenaars werken samen aan verschillende lichtprojecten.
text by www.lichtfestivalgent.be