Newsroom Light and Public spaces

At dusk, the GRASSI Museum in Leipzig reveals a new identity. Light in Motion, a permanent installation by DOPPELDENK, animates its window façades with subtle, evolving light patterns, reactivating the museum’s architecture and its relationship to the city after dark.

At a moment when many cities are facing increasing financial pressure, competing priorities, and rising demands on public budgets, cultural events — even highly successful ones — are becoming fragile. Lumiere Durham’s final edition reminds us that light festivals cannot be taken for granted. They need to be understood, valued, and defended for what they truly bring to cities.

Urban lighting professionals can now delve into a compelling new forward-looking resource from France’s Association des Concepteurs Lumière et Éclairagistes (ACE – Lighting designers and engineers’ association): the bilingual white paper “2055, lighting design”, published in November 2025 for the association’s 30th anniversary.

The EU-funded Art of Darkness project has just launched an open call for cities (and private developers supported by a municipality) to join in and become Follower and Replicator cities, to help adapt and expand the project’s approach across Europe. Deadline for applications: 30 January 2026 (midnight CET)

Co-organised by LUCI and the City of Lyon in the frame of the Fête des Lumières 2025,, the event explored how humour, lightness and joy in public space can support more inclusive, people-centred urban nights.

The 9th Seoul Asia Urban Lighting Conference was successfully held from 30–31 October 2025, bringing together lighting professionals, city officials, designers, researchers, and technology experts from across Asia and beyond. Hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in partnership with the LUCI Association, this year’s conference marked a significant milestone in promoting regional and global collaboration in urban lighting.

The City of Bruges hosted the LUCI Lab Bruges, a special-format event developed by LUCI in collaboration with Fluvius and VVSG. Participants explored how light shapes the nocturnal experience of cities and how thoughtful lighting reinforces a city’s nighttime identity. The Lab brought together 13 LUCI member cities from 7 countries and 19 Flemish municipalities.

Rabat took centre stage at the end of September 2025, hosting the first-ever Africa Urban Lighting Workshop, an event that gathered African cities, experts, and policymakers to discuss ideas on the future of sustainable lighting across the continent.

Participate in the Art of Darkness project and help your city evolve by sharing your experiences of darkness across Bologna, Copenhagen, Montpellier, Oulu, and Tallinn.

Fez has become the third Moroccan city – after Rabat and Tiznit – to join the LUCI network. We met the Mayor of Fez, Mr. Abdeslam Bekkali, to get his perspective on the city’s relationship with LUCI and the importance of light in shaping Fez’s urban future.