This year, visitors of the "Staro Rīga" Light Festival will be delighted by more than 40 light objects – not only works by local artists, but also a wide range of installations and light objects by foreign artists. Artists from Portugal, Macedonia, the Netherlands, France, Canada, Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Romania and Italy will participate in the festival, together making up one third of the total selection of this year's festival.
“"Staro Rīga" is an internationally renowned light festival among the creators of light objects. Light objects travel to various light festivals in Europe and around the world, which is a common practice, just as our light artists' works travel from their premieres in Riga to the rest of the world. I am glad that this year a programme has been developed that allows Riga to present a diverse programme of international light objects," says Ms Diāna Čivle, curator of the "Staro Rīga" Light Festival.
Old Town Ring of Light
The Portuguese artist's work "Petals of Future Memories", in the making of which art school and studio students have already been actively involved, will be waiting for visitors at Līvu Square. Participants are invited to paint flowers by attaching each one to an illuminated pole. Each flower is unique, reflecting a personal choice of colour and style, but together they form a radiant work. The flowers symbolise freedom, as each person decides how to express themselves, while the whole installation conveys a message of common purpose and co-creation.
The light art work "Human" will be on display in the Cathedral Square. Australian artist Amenda Perera's work is inspired by Auguste Rodin's famous 1880 bronze sculpture “The Thinker”. In contrast to Rodin's depiction of the ideal man, Perera's "Human" seems a little confused. He reflects on the excesses of modern society and their harmful effects on the world.
In Herder Square, everyone is invited to co-create the installation "Floating Stars" by placing floating candles that reflect off the water. Videoprojection in Herder Square will allow for quiet enjoyment of ornaments drawn by candles in the water.
Visitors will also be able to touch the stars on Bastejkalns, where an installation by Macedonian artist Boris Petrovsky, "Touch a Star", will allow visitors to reach for a star. Touch is the starting point of everything. Touch is connection, love, creation, the big bang. When you touch the installation, it responds.
Riga city centre park light circle
The Vērmanes Garden Stage will offer an object "Pixel Garden. The Eternal Living Room” providing visitors an intimate journey through 500 years of Baltic culture, celebrating the families who served as true "heralds of the dawn" – bringing light in dark times and ensuring cultural continuity for generations to come. Every family’s living room has been a place where hope has been nurtured, knowledge has been accumulated and the cultural identity of a people has been shaped. The projection is a collaboration with Estonian artist Aljona Movko-Megi and music composer Maxim Adel.
On the Esplanade, all visitors of the Light Festival will be greeted by "Field of Fireflies" – a hypnotic light installation with many flying points of light imitating the movements of fireflies – insects of the night. Shiny. Terrifying. Together, the levitating dots create a dynamic luminous landscape that inspires curiosity and awe in visitors.
On the Esplanade, you will see the imaginary and illuminated birds "Les Lumineoles" dancing in the wind, bringing light and a poetic atmosphere to the city. As they take off, they colour the night sky, captivating the audience with a delightful aerial ballet. "Les Lumineoles” is created by the creative group Porté par le Vent from France. Their installations and light performances have been featured in light festivals in many countries.
Circle of light on Brīvības Street
At the Old St. Gertrude Church, an audiovisual installation "Entanglement", which combines scientific thinking and creative imagination to explore the interaction between quantum physics and art, will be presented. The work is a collaboration between Canadian and German artists Frances Jobin and Markus Heckmann, inspired by the phenomenon known as quantum entanglement. The idea of quantum entanglement reveals an invisible link between everything that exists. These elements do not have to be coherent in space and time, because nothing in the quantum world exists as we perceive it. During the festival, an audiovisual performance will take place, performed live by the authors of the work.
Circle of light on Miera Street
Swedish artist Lina de Mola's “Lost and Found” – a visually subtle and emotionally rich light object that inspires contemplation of the progression of human life – between the lost and the recovered, between light and darkness – will be on display at 13 Miera Street. Two illuminated suitcases symbolise the inner world and layers of human experience – memories, journeys and moments that stay with us even when they seem lost.
At 20/22 Miera Street, you will be able to see "Garden", a large-scale interactive light projection by British artist Ant Dickinson, which turns the façade of the building into a digital garden in which viewers can participate. Using a mobile phone, each visitor can control butterflies, bees and other insects that move across the projection surface, allowing everyone to participate in a shared light game.
The installation "Out of Balance", created by Romanian and Portuguese artists, is located at 20/22 Miera Street and invites to reflect on the fragility of the balance between man and nature. Two metal sculptures – giant, precisely crafted mosquitoes illuminated by LED lights – symbolise the impact of humans on the environment and our place in nature's ecosystem.
Further along Miera Street – in the Latvian Academy of Culture quarter, 58A Miera Street, you can see the light installation "Oculucis", which tells about the power of the gaze and the human desire to see more than can be seen with the eyes alone. Italian author Hermes Manjalardo's work reminds us of our ability not only to see, but also to feel the world around us.
"Staro Rīga" Light Festival will take place during four days from November 15 to 18 every evening from 17:00 to 23:00.
The route of the "Staro Rīga" 2025 Light Festival will consist of six "Circles of Light" through the city, starting with the light objects near the National Library of Latvia, followed by the Old Riga Light Circle, the Freedom Monument Light Circle, the Riga City Centre Park Light Circle (Vērmanes Garden, Esplanade), the Freedom Street Light Circle, and as the final one – the Miera Street Light Circle.
Full programme of the "Staro Rīga" Light Festival can be found on the website www.staroriga.lv.
Information was prepared by Ineta Miglāne, Project Coordinator, External Communication Division of the Communications Department of the Riga City Council, e-mail: ineta.miglane@riga.lv.
