Xi'an presents festival of lights

An emerging form of visual art that uses light as a medium does not only brings diversity to artistic expression but promotes urban development and city life.

OnlyLyon, the organizer of the Lyon Festival of Lights in France, will bring its show to Xi'an during the National Day holiday, joining the Arty Light 2014 Xi'an International Light Show for activities commemorating the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France.

The Lyon Festival of Lights is the most famous and influential light festival in the world. This will be the first time it has stepped out of Europe.

Lionel Flasseur, director of OnlyLyon, said Xi'an is an appropriate place for the light show because the Silk Road that connected Asian culture with Western civilization 2,000 years ago started there. Lyon was the terminal point on the western end for business and cultural communication.

At the Lyon Festival of Lights 2013, two replicas of pottery figures of warriors and horses were presented to the city of Lyon by the Shaanxi Museum of Terracotta Warriors and Horses. The two artworks stood out among the 80 that were included in the festival.

The 2014 Xi'an International Light show will be presented a Tang West Market, at the South Gate of the City Wall and at Golden Eagle Shopping Mall simultaneously.

Tang West Market is where the Silk Road began.

French artist Philippe Morvan will bring his art installation The Ringz to the market.

At the South Gate of the City Wall, a German art team led by artist Lei Xue will use special lighting effects, along with silk and smoke, to give Xi'an residents a dreamlike Silk Road trip projected on the wall.

Another highlight of the show will be surreal magical effects on the facade of the Golden Eagle Shopping Mall. Visitors will see huge dolphins moving back and forth on the building as the show utilizes the world's top Swiss Barco projection equipment in a fusion of sound, light and electricity to present a dreamy kingdom of light and shadow.

The opening ceremony of the Xi'an light show will be held Sept 30 at Tang West Market and South Gate of City Wall. The show will run from Oct 1 to 7 at Tang West Market and Golden Eagle.