New Orleans Tricentennial Celebration
Art Tra nsfo rms Communities
Illuminating New Orleans LUNA (Light Up Nola Arts) is a visionary initiative by the Arts Council New Orleans to utilize iconic local architecture and merge contemporary light and sound works, motion graphics, and videomapping practices to create a series of site-specific large-scale outdoor light installations across the city leading up to New Orleans 2018 Tricentennial. Through LUNA Fête the Arts Council New Orleans has initiated a cultural exchange effort intended to foster both international artistic exchange alongside increased awareness of and opportunities for the local arts community. Envisioned as a community-wide celebration the event began in 2014, to demonstrate the Arts Council’s vision that art transforms communities. Each year the Arts Council has grown the scope of international artistic partnerships and through training has expanded the number of local artist installations. This has contributed to LUNA Fête solidifying it’s position in New Orleans festival calendar. LUNA Fête provides the ideal opportunity to celebrate New Orleans’ creative industries. This project sits at the intersection of art, architecture, technology, film, community engagement and tourism – igniting cross-sector relationships and collaboration. LUNA Fête represents the next generation of family friendly outdoor spectacle that is consistent with the New Orleans tradition of community and street-based celebration that inspires awe and connects people to a new era of contemporary art.
AVA’s Viva Nola!
fo cu s a r e a s
CONTEMPORARY ART One of the first festivals of its kind in the U.S., LUNA Fête is the longest-running large scale projection mapping festival in the country, positioning New Orleans at the forefront of this new art movement.
TECHNOLOGY Beginning with projection-mapping technology, LUNA Fête has expanded to include digital sculptures, motion censors, and lasers offering unlimited potential for creative technology.
ARCHITECTURE LUNA Fête offers unlimited potential for activating New Orleans’ iconic architecuture, showcasing the unique and historic nature of the city through innovative site-specific installations.
COMMUNITY A free, multi-day outdoor celebration, LUNA Fête combines New Orleans’ tradition of street-based celebration and large-scale spectacle to inspire audiences of all ages.
Event Hig h li ght s LUNA Fêt e R e cap Beginning in 2014, with a single projection mapping installation, LUNA Fête has grown to attract top international talent, connect them with locals, and provide educational opportunities for both youth and local artists. The event has helped turn New Orleans into a launch pad for a new wave of contemporary artists and makers. LUNA Fête highlights art and culture as a catalyst for innovation that can improve public space, impact the lives of youth, enhance the local workforce, and steer New Orleans towards a brighter future. Recognized by the New York Times, Associated Press, and AFar Magazine, LUNA Fête has uniquely distinguished itself within New Orleans’ saturated cultural events calendar. The success, growth, and audience appreciation of LUNA Fête makes it a perfect event to close out New Orleans Tricentennial celebration.
I l l umi nat i n g Cu lt u re & C reat ivit y
Piazza Piano by David Sullivan and Dancing Grounds illuminated dancers
100K
“The City of New Orleans has grown to be a point of pride for Americans everywhere... At the end of the year buildings all over New Orleans will be bathed in luminous art for the mesmerizing LUNA Fête”
Visitors 2016 - 2017
Ten Major Anniversaries Worth Traveling For This Year - Smithsonian Magazine
30 2 017 I nst a l l at i ons
20
“LUNA Fête returns to position iconic local architecture as canvases for high-tech displays of cuttingedge, outdoor light installations across the city.”
million
2017 Media Impressions
Louisiana Lights - Country Roads Magazine
TV + Radio
P rint + Digital
Social Media
18.6 Million
769,400
769,400
Impressions
Impressions
Impressions
Spiralux, an Electric Girls LUNA Fête installation
Shining Light on Public Art LUNA Fête transforms downtown New Orleans into a playground of light animated by local, national, and international artists. Through interactive and light-based contemporary art, the event brings people together across all demographics in a joyful expression of play and possibility demonstrating how light can transform the urban landscape into an extrodrinary experience of art, culture, and creativity. Expanding on New Orleans’ tradition of street-based celebration and largescale public spectacle, LUNA Fête is an innovative and unique expression of New Orleans culture.
int er nat io na l a r t ist s
Lyon , Fra nce 2014 & 2016
Ca s ca is , P ort u gal 2015
Be rl in , G e r m a ny 2016
Mo n treal , C a na d a 2016 & 2017
Q u e reta ro, Mexico 2017
Passages, by Canadian Artist Serge Maheu Presented by The Helis Foundation
LOCAL ARTISTS Critical to the success and growth of LUNA Fête is the Arts Council’s commitment to invest in and train local artists in the creation of interactive, light-based artworks. This practice continued in 2017 to activate more than 28 local art installations. Additionally, through Arts Council support, LUNA Fête artist training graduates were able to secure both permanent lightart installation commissions and exhibitions at emerging light festivals across the country. This investment in local artists is beginning to influence the visual landscape of the city year-round and positioning New Orleans as the premiere location for light-based art in the United States.
Vibrant City
Constellations
by Brennan Steele (left)
by Kirasu Collective (above)
Dial-a-Llama by Pam Keaton (left and above)
LUNA Fête attendees gather around an illuminated Bayou Circus performer underneath glowing beams by Laser Spectacles
Yo u th E n g a g e m e nt - Electric Girls -
“Thank you so much for an incredible weekend of LUNA Fete. The experience for our girls and their families was unparalleled. Both exhibits were hits and only possible because of your persistence and assistance.” - Flor Serna, Founder and Executive Director of Electric Girls
E lectr i c M u ral by Electric Girls (left)
In 2017 Arts Council created a partnership with Electric Girls, an organization dedicated to addressing gender-based discrimination in the technology field by teaching young girls coding, construction, and computer programming skills. We codesigned a curriculum in which the girls were given the training and materials to create light-based art installations for public display. With their Electric Mural, the girls were on site during LUNA Fête teaching festival attendees to create led lights which were then placed in a wall to create a light mural, inviting attendees to participate in the artwork creation and showcasing the skills the Electric Girls learned throughout LUNA Fête training.
c o mmun i t y res po ns e
@seancinco
Enjoying a chilly night at LUNA Fête! While visiting New Orleans from Florida.
@nolalush
@cheqk
“I think you should just got for it, Celebrate every victory” LUNA Fête stole my heart once again. Wish they did it more than once a year.
What a great night @lunafete and what beautiful people and art! #artislife
“In my opinion the identity of New Orleans hinges upon the existence of a rich and diverse artistic culture, spanning across mediums and platforms. The Arts Council serves this culture by sustaining and promoting all forms of art in our city, helping local artists connect with local communities. It is by facilitating these connections that our city can continue to share all the creative magic it has to offer.”
- Martin Benson LUNA Fête Artist
The politics of poetry! Happy Holidays folks and if you need @cubsthepoet a poem let me know. #lunafete Cantrell can tell.
@deadly dapperdesigns
Gorgeous #LUNAFete event put on by @ @katemccrear y PanAmericanLife in Lafayette Square leading up to #NOLA300
Grateful that the mates got me out to explore LUNA FĂŞte. #workbreak #nofilter #nolalife #weliveonthemoon
Kids totally mesmerized by @artsneworleans #LUNAFete @helenamoreno
For partnership, sponsorship, event, or artist inquiries
co n ta ct
Lindsay Glatz Creative Director lindsay@artsneworleans.org (847) 708-7281 Arts Council New Orleans 1307 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd 504.523.1465 office www.artsneworleans.org @artsneworleans @lunafete
#A rtTra n s fo r m sC o m m u n i t i e s