The Economist takes a look at the material and symbolic advantages of holding the European Capital of Culture title.
RAIN SPITS down as daylight fades over the bald hills and silver lakes of Connemara in County Galway, a coastal area in the west of Ireland. “This is like summer for me,” Kari Kola, a Finnish artist, says cheerfully as the squalls driving across Loch na Fooey herald the arrival of Storm Ciara from the nearby Atlantic Ocean. Mr Kola, who lives north of the Arctic circle in Finland, is no stranger to challenging climate and terrain. He travels the world to devise light-based installations that transform landscapes and buildings into sites of wonder.
“Savage Beauty”, the light sculpture that will cover 500 hectares of this valley over four days in March, is one of the most spectacular projects scheduled for Galway’s tenure as the “European Capital of Culture” in 2020 (an honour it will share with Rijeka in Croatia). This year Galway will host 195 separate initiatives and around 1,500 events. Mr Kola’s work alone will deploy 1,000 lighting fixtures and 20 kilometres of cabling. His vision, as he later explains beside a crackling fire in a local bar, will interact with the famously changeable west Ireland weather to immerse spectators in a one-off shared experience. “They are present in the moment. They can just be.”... Keep reading on The Economist
RAIN SPITS down as daylight fades over the bald hills and silver lakes of Connemara in County Galway, a coastal area in the west of Ireland. “This is like summer for me,” Kari Kola, a Finnish artist, says cheerfully as the squalls driving across Loch na Fooey herald the arrival of Storm Ciara from the nearby Atlantic Ocean. Mr Kola, who lives north of the Arctic circle in Finland, is no stranger to challenging climate and terrain. He travels the world to devise light-based installations that transform landscapes and buildings into sites of wonder.
“Savage Beauty”, the light sculpture that will cover 500 hectares of this valley over four days in March, is one of the most spectacular projects scheduled for Galway’s tenure as the “European Capital of Culture” in 2020 (an honour it will share with Rijeka in Croatia). This year Galway will host 195 separate initiatives and around 1,500 events. Mr Kola’s work alone will deploy 1,000 lighting fixtures and 20 kilometres of cabling. His vision, as he later explains beside a crackling fire in a local bar, will interact with the famously changeable west Ireland weather to immerse spectators in a one-off shared experience. “They are present in the moment. They can just be.”... Keep reading on The Economist