After Dark
Creative BOP’s urban festival is bringing light to dark times.
Words Luke Schroder - images supplied
It’s easy to walk around Tauranga’s city streets without paying any close attention to the big blank walls of surrounding buildings. Concrete slabs and featureless facades line the streets, designed to be forgettable, non-intrusive enclosures for the businesses contained behind them. But for some clever minds these walls represent a far more exciting opportunity. These walls will soon become canvases for creativity as artists light up public spaces with an eclectic mix of colourful shapes, short films, abstract imagery, and innovative lighting technologies that will show the city in a new light.
This exciting initiative is being brought to Tauranga by Creative Bay of Plenty, with funding support from Creative New Zealand. Trustpower has come on board as the major corporate sponsor, alongside partners Downtown Tauranga, Tauranga City Council, Priority One, Veros, Te Tuhi Mareikura Trust and Toi Ohomai.
After Dark Urban Light Festival is an all-new art experience that will see a range of artworks transform Tauranga’s CBD into a gleaming playground full of exciting, illuminated installations. For 10 days in May a selection of luminous artworks will form a unique art trail across the central city through a mixture of video projection, freestanding sculptures, glowing alleyways, short films, and creative uses of vacant spaces. The festival is designed to be a self-guided journey spread across multiple sites within Tauranga’s CBD that encourages people to walk around the city discovering the various installations and the magic within.
It may not seem like a logical time to be running a new festival given the recent wave of event cancellations, postponements, and ongoing uncertainty, however with some clever thinking and careful planning After Dark is designed to be able to proceed regardless of traffic light settings or gathering restrictions. Because the festival isn’t fixed to a particular day, time, or single location, all those attending can be spread out from each other and stay socially distant whilst still enjoying all the festival has to offer.
“We’ve intentionally designed a covid-friendly format that allows people to participate from a distance and at their own leisure”, says Project Manager Luke Schroder. “People can view any artwork at any time on any evening during the 10 days of the festival and still have the same great experience.”
After Dark will be an opportunity for families, friends, and individuals of all ages to share in an exciting and fresh artistic experience described as a ‘tapestry of illuminated creativity’. After Dark explores themes of connectedness in our society, specifically connections to people, culture, and nature. These connections make up the themed ‘threads’ of After Dark and serve as inspiration for new works created for the festival.
Emily Woolerton is one local artist creating a new artwork specifically for After Dark. As the creative mind behind Mount Maunganui design studio ‘Calico’ and clothing label ‘The Know’, Emily is no stranger to creating fun designs and out-of-the-box visual ideas. For the launch of her first clothing line, Emily used video projection to transform Papamoa photography studio Suburbia into an exciting visual feast of giant slurping noodles, animated playing cards, floor-to-ceiling curtains made of poetry, and a brand-new fashion collection on display.
“Normal moments became jarring by placing them in the centre of attention. Someone eating noodles is an average, everyday occurrence – until that person is five metres wide and you can see every detail. It became an immersive experience, where people were both transfixed and horrified by the ordinary.”
With a mind for design and an eye for detail, Emily is looking forward to creating a new piece to be exhibited at After Dark later this year. Her artwork titled ‘Critical’ is a creative look at our need for human connection and examines how we are wired to thrive through relationships with one another instead of getting lost in our own insular worlds.
Emily is excited to see creativity fostered in the Bay of Plenty through projects such as After Dark and is looking forward to seeing the vibrancy it will bring to the city. “One of the beautiful things about art is how it brings people together, and it’s really exciting to see events like this build the culture and atmosphere in Tauranga.”
After Dark Urban Light Festival runs from Friday May 13 to Sunday May 22, 2022 in Tauranga CBD and is a free-entry event suitable for all ages.