LUMINO dazzles nightly
in downtown Montreal
Thirty captivating, luminous works to discover in public spaces
February 15, 2025
Created and produced by the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, LUMINO is a must-see Montreal winter event. For 15 winters, this free and original urban experience has transformed the heart of the city into a celebration of light and creativity, showcasing Montreal’s northern character.
1000 Faces by Alejandro Figueroa of +Amor • Image: JF Savaria
Until March 9, 2025, LUMINO presents its most comprehensive program to date, featuring 30 captivating and luminous installations in public spaces. For the first time, it even includes several indoor installations.
Daily from sunset to 11 p.m., LUMINO invites visitors to fully embrace winter by exploring luminous creations – works that bring warmth and colour to the cold months.
This year, no fewer than 30 works, including 14 outdoors, 11 indoors, and 7 video projections, are being gradually unveiled from PVM Esplanade at Place Ville Marie to Place Émilie-Gamelin. These works, created by 15 studios and more than 20 artists from here and abroad, will offer Montrealers and visitors a renewed experience throughout the winter season with contemplative and participatory installations.
Landmark Works to Discover
On Sainte-Catherine Street West at the corner of St-Urbain Street, Talking Heads by Limelight Art is turning heads with its two sculptures composed of 4,000 LEDs. These interactive heads produce facial expressions in various colours and conduct real conversations through light, creating quite a stir among passersby.
Polar Circle by Jason Carter and M.A.D. Collective • Image: JF Savaria
On the PVM Esplanade at Place Ville Marie, Éloge de l’air by Chevalvert invites the public to float a massive 5-metre-long banner in the air, while Polar Circle by Jason Carter, one of Canada’s most exciting and accomplished contemporary Indigenous visual artists, and M.A.D. Collective invites visitors to immerse themselves in the world of the majestic wildlife of the Far North.
Chandelier by Tilt • image: Ulysse Lemerise – OSA
Chandeliers by Tilt, on the forecourt of St. James United Church, offers a unique open-air ballroom experience; Biolumen by Rahda Chaddah and Raw Design at the Palais des congrès draws inspiration from bioluminescent organisms that inhabit the oceans for a unique contemplative experience. Orb by Spy transforms the Place des Arts Esplanade with its 90 convex discs made of polished steel.
Quebec Artists at the Heart of LUMINO
Chaleur Humaine is a work by Anne Lagacé that resembles a suspended sun. It brings colour and warmth to Place Pasteur. Les Fabuloscopes by La Camaraderie with Eruoma Awashish, installed in front of the Grande Bibliothèque, invites passersby to create stroboscopic animations.
Chaleur humaine by Anne Lagacé • Image: Nathalie St-Pierre
A major piece, 1000 Faces by Alejandro Figueroa of +Amor, facing the Esplanade Tranquille skating rink, is a colossal 12-metre arch with 1,779 moving mirrors. The Sleeping Orchestra by Ottomata is an interactive light and sound installation that allows the public to awaken all the musical culture dormant on Saint-Denis Street. These artists are just a few of the 20 Quebec creators featured in LUMINO.
Unprecedented Indoor Installations
For the first time since its inception, LUMINO will also take place in indoor spaces throughout the Quartier des Spectacles and downtown with new works and installations. At the entrance of Central, the dynamic immersive installation Equilibrium: Tensio, by Guillaume Bourassa and Francis Théberge, welcomes visitors by playing with perception. At first glance chaotic, the work transforms into a harmonious structure from a specific viewpoint.
Trumpet Flowers by Amigo and Amigo • Image: JF Savaria
Positioned above the fountain in Complexe Desjardins, Vortex by artist Nicolas Paolozzi offers an encounter between light, water, and geometry. This immersive work, presented as a world premiere, provides a poetic and sensory experience for the public. At the Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, discover the interactive work Cinétique by Ottomata. With dozens of luminous rods arranged in a circular pattern, this installation invites an exploration of the invisible kinetic force that surrounds us and dictates our daily lives.
Biolumen by Radha Chaddah and Raw Design • Image: Ulysse Lemerise – OS
At Place des Arts, Kaleidoscope: A Social Media Trinity by Alejandro Figueroa of +Amor offers a reflection on the creation, dissemination, and consumption of content, exploring the impact of social networks. LUMINO also occupies the ground floor of Îlot Balmoral with experimental indoor works selected in collaboration with Montreal artist centres and galleries: perte de signal, Elektra Galerie, and Eastern Bloc. The public will have an exclusive opportunity to discover Microstars by Charline Dally and Gabrielle HB, Chasing Waterfalls by Hidden Edges, and Matière Première by Yan Breuleux.
Video Projections to Enliven Winter Nights
The public will have the chance to experience video projections that will immerse them in original visual and immersive worlds. Oddly Satisfying, Colegram illuminates three facades with a series of three video projections drawing on web culture codes and videos.
Matière première by Yan Breuleux • Image: Thibault Carron
On the facade of the Grande Bibliothèque, Hyperobjects by artist Aude Guivarc’h invites spectators to contemplate the ephemeral nature of what seems solid and immutable. Finally, at the Esplanade Tranquille skating rink, the interactive video projection Au bord du lac Tranquille by Mirari and Normal Studio takes Montrealers and visitors on a dreamlike journey into the heart of Quebec’s northern character.
15 Years of Creativity, Digital Innovation, and International Influence
Since its inception, the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership has produced 25 works for LUMINO and presented 50 creations, showcasing dozens of artists and creators, installations, and video projections. Today, LUMINO’s success extends beyond Montreal’s borders.
Kaleidoscope: A Social Media Trinity by Figueroa de +Amor • Image: Ulysse Lemerise – OSA
Since 2016, several cultural districts worldwide have hosted the installations. They have been presented on 267 occasions, travelling to 100 cities in 14 countries across 5 continents. Quartier des Spectacles International, a new non-profit organization affiliated with the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership founded in 2022, distributes the works and helps position LUMINO and Montreal as a global reference in digital art and design in public spaces.
LUMINO 2024-2025, 15th Edition
Until March 9, 2025
Free and accessible daily from dusk to 11 p.m.
Discover the interactive map of LUMINO: luminomtl.com
About the Quartier des Spectacles and the Partnership
As Montreal’s cultural heart, the Quartier des Spectacles offers the highest concentration and diversity of cultural venues in North America and hosts numerous festivals and events. The Quartier features innovative urban installations that showcase cutting-edge disciplines such as lighting design, immersive environment creation, and interactive digital spaces. As a showcase for new multimedia technologies, the Quartier des Spectacles positions Montreal as an international leader in the field.
Created in 2003, the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership is a non-profit organization that brings together over 85 active members in the area. It oversees the Quartier des Spectacles’ animation through cultural activity programming, management and animation of public spaces, lighting of the Quartier, and its promotion as an essential cultural destination. The Partnership receives support from the City of Montreal.
Feature image: Talking Heads by Limelight Art – photo credit: Ulysse Lemerise – OSA
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