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VII International Festival of Light
and Media Art
RU
About Festival
The International Festival of Light and Media Art, Light Nights, is an immersive nighttime experience that transforms the unique palace park of Gatchina into an open-air exhibition of light and media art.
Since its inception in 2017, the Light Nights festival has introduced contemporary art to a wide audience, while serving as a creative and technological laboratory for artists working with light, landscapes, architecture, and digital technologies.
The festival encourages experimentation, offering participants a platform to explore new ideas and formats. Most of the projects presented at the festival make their debut here as world premieres.
The festival encompasses several program areas, including:
A distinctive advantage — and creative challenge — for festival participants lies in the Gatchina Museum and Reserve itself.
This architectural and landscape masterpiece has stood through centuries of changing eras, rulers, and cultural transformations, offering a rich foundation for artistic exploration.
At the festival, our mission is to unite contemporary art and cutting-edge technologies with the historic landscape. We encourage projects that create a dialogue between the past and present, infusing heritage with new meaning.
The Light Nights festival invites both audiences and participants to view the world through the lens of contemporary technological art, honoring the past while unlocking new possibilities for the future.
Who Can Participate
We welcome applications from artists working in the fields of:
  • Light and multimedia installations
  • Digital art
  • Video mapping
Artists, architects, lighting designers, theatre scenographers, sound artists, composers, VR and AR developers, IT experts, technologists, and other creative professionals are invited to showcase their work, either individually or as part of a team.
Participants must be at least 18 years old.
What Type of Content We’re Looking For
We expect original artistic concepts that align with the overall festival context.

Since Light Nights is an open-air festival held in Gatchina Palace Park, indoor installations cannot be accommodated.
Projection surfaces include the facades of the Great Gatchina Palace and other architectural elements within the park. Most of the program consists of objects located in the park's landscapes and water features. All artworks should be accessible to the audience at all times, whether through a short repeating cycle or an interactive ongoing scenario. Installations must run smoothly without interruption, as visitors will be constantly moving between locations.
Our Primary Formats Include:
  • Architectural mapping
  • Projection shows on water screens and other surfaces
  • Installations with integrated video art. The festival does not showcase video art on standard screens
  • Light and laser installations
  • Interactive installations designed for high foot traffic
  • Immersive spaces integrated into the landscape
  • Audiovisual performances
  • Promenade performances across the festival grounds
How We Work with the Space
We believe in the synergy between space and artistic vision, which is why we value innovative, site-specific projects that enhance the unique landscape and historical context of the Museum-Reserve.
We invite you to explore the area and develop your creative project for a specific location — this could be a building façade, a meadow, a pond, an island, a bridge, a pavilion, a gate, or an alley.
A map highlighting the most significant locations in Gatchina Park has been prepared, along with additional materials for each site.
All Locations
16. Swan's Island
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35. Round Pond
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34. Flower's Hill
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36. Botanical Gardens
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33. Octogonal Pond
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32. Rectangular Pond
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31. Birch Gate
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30. Portal "Mask"
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29. Birch House
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28. Flat Glade
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27. Inclined Glade
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26. Love Island and Venus Pavilion
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24. Parterre
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23. Cape
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22. Water Maze
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21. Hill
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20. Concrete Block
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25. Marina
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19. Crow's Island
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18. Ladle Pond
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17. Admiralty
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14. Admiralty Gate
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15. Water area of the White Lake
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13. Jordanian well
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12. Pontoon Bridge
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11. Carpin Bridge
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10. Carpin Pond
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9. Stairs
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8. Statue of Athena
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7. Upper Dutch Garden
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6. Lower Dutch Garden
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5. Moat
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4. Lateral Facade of Gatchina Palace
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3. Jordanian facade of Gatchina Palace
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2. Own Garden
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  1. Arsenal Kare of the Gatchina Palace
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2025 Festival Theme
The theme of the Light Nights festival in 2025 is GAME.
We encourage artists and audiences to approach this theme with utmost seriousness! Game is the fundamental code of human interaction with the world, a key element of our reality at every level — from childhood fantasies to complex adult strategies, from board games to virtual worlds.
Philosophers like Plato, Schiller, Kant, Pascal, and Huizinga, among others, have pondered the phenomenon of games as a defining feature of human nature, and art as the ultimate expression of play. Not only scholars but artists have endlessly explored the nature of game and its role in art and culture.
Game is a unique form of human activity where imagination transforms reality, where rules create structure without limiting creativity, where participants willingly immerse themselves in alternative worlds, and where the process matters more than the outcome. It is a universal language that connects people across ages, cultures, and social backgrounds.
In the world of play, rules can be invented or rewritten. Games allow us to experience the impossible. Through play, we can fearlessly look into the past and rehearse possible futures. The space of game is a territory where familiar boundaries disappear, roles shift, rules are revisited, and new possibilities arise.
The Light Nights festival is the perfect playing field where light and multimedia installations don’t just create spaces to observe but environments that invite interaction and transformation.
Light and media technologies foster a dialogue between the audience and the artist, the environment and the technology, sensations and ideas.
At Light Nights anything is possible in the space between reality and fantasy, creation and destruction, rules and their absence. We will enter a world of artistic freedom, where everyone sets their own rules and defines their own roles.
So, shall we play?
How the Main Program is Formed
1
Application
We review all applications and reach out to every applicant via email. If a project sparks our interest, we arrange a Zoom call to learn more.
2
Technical Details
We discuss the artistic and technical aspects of the project, rider requirements, logistics, and other key details. This phase may take considerable time, as we may consult with experts and consultants.
3
Participation in the Program
If feasible and compelling solutions are found, we invite the project to join the festival program.
4
Program Announcement
The final lineup will be announced by April 20, 2025.
Submit Your Application

We would be pleased to cover all the travel expenses, insurance and visa charges, accommodations in Saint Petersburg, production and materials costs, as well as any other related expenses.

While we do not have a fixed fee for the artwork, we are open to the discussion about the compensation. The festival budget is quite limited, but we are actively seeking new partners and remain open to further negotiations.


Given the current challenges in importing equipment and large-scale installations, we kindly ask that artworks be created on-site. We are committed to providing all necessary resources in accordance with your technical rider and will fully coordinate the production process to ensure the successful realization of your artwork.


The main program is curated by the festival team, led by director Olga Arshanskaya. While we strive to include as many projects as possible, like any major festival, the number of applications far exceeds our available resources. The team reserves the right to decline applications without explanation.