Looking back at Lumiere 21.
MichellenCooper reflects on Lumiere 2021 and what it means for the local community, longnafter the lights have dimmed. The chief executive of County Durham CommunitynFoundation supports the festival through match funding and by sitting on the developmentnboard.
It was thenlook on her face that did it for me. Pride, a little bit of shock, not quitensure if I was joking.
She was justna hair older than my own daughter, standing next to the neon artwork she hadndesigned and created that read, simply, “Own Your Voice.”
I loved itnand asked if I could buy it after the festival for our offices and could seenher processing the fact she’d made something beautiful and valuable.
The festival, produced by Artichoke, is an accumulative experience. You see the first installation and smile, you see the next and think how pretty it looks with the moon and the castle in the background. And then there’s that tipping point when you see more and more and it just becomes a fabulous, dazzling unfolding.
And it’s thensame with the people of County Durham who are brought together by the festivalnto create a choice number of community artworks that grace the streets of thencity: from children to the elderly, hearing and seeing the individuals experiencesnof those who take part in the festival is as rich as the installationsnthemselves.
As a charitynthat digs its heels in against poverty and inequality of opportunity, we are innthe business of people, not light festivals, and that is why we support thenLearning and Participation programme that keeps Lumiere alive throughout its two-yearncycles and way beyond the four days that 140,000 visitors enjoyed in 2021. Fornus it is about opening up opportunity and magic to everyone, not just anprivileged few.
Schoolnchildren, prisoners, people with mobility issues or mental health issues allnparticipate in the programme, with their work standing alongside theninternational artists that grace the festival. From blousy, jewel-colourednflowers strung across the Bailey, to a Lilliputian lantern village completenwith miniature Cathedral and Ferris Wheel in the shadow of the actualnCathedral, 2021’s installations by members of our community were some of mynfavourites.
Communityninvolvement is an element of the festival that has become increasingly vital.nFor 2021 the Foundation put forward £100,000 in match funding, helping thenArtichoke team bring in a further £150,000 from local businesses of all sizesnto support this wider work. 2021 was also notable as not only did it involvenlocal people across the county, but more installations than ever were shownnacross the county, at Raby Castle, Finchale Priory and Seaham amongst otherndestinations.
For me thisnis the democratisation of the festival, getting art and aspiration out into thengeography for all to enjoy, whether they are first timers to the festival, facenmobility issues or simply feel afraid to join the larger crowds in the cityncentre due to clinical vulnerabilities.
The way thenfestival has evolved is something that should make us all feel proud aboutnwhere we live. Lumiere is the main course when it comes to our bid for City ofnCulture 2025, because it brings us the best kind of culture. A culture that isnfor everyone.
