When the work of art is nature and the water puts on a show

Six years ago, when a Brixen was organized the first edition of Water Light Festival, the organizers focused on the amazement effect that the artistic performances could arouse in the public. Over the years the festival has evolved, it has grown in terms of awareness of what it could go on to tell as well as amaze, and in this year’s edition, which has just been inaugurated and which will end on May 21st, the visitors’ attention is reference to the topic of sustainability of natural resources. A theme that fits perfectly with the South Tyrolean city which is playing all its cards on sustainability, for a present and a livable future for its inhabitants and for its great resource which is tourism.

The artists invited to the festival, which in its planning involved the authorities in a participatory way, the experts called to collaborate and the Bressanone population itself, this year worked on the message “”Water is life – light is art” which transformed the locality into an open-air gallery where works and installations are a delight for the eyes but, above all, food for thought.

In what has become one of the events of light art established in Europe, the path marked by a blue luminescent thread, which evokes the flow of a river of crystalline water, leads from one installation to another every evening between 9 and 12 midnight. In via Mercato Vecchio the Ukrainian artist Julia Shamsheiva pays homage to the cycle of life, inspired by Jorge Luis Borges and by his fascination with recurring patterns found in nature. Endless, his work, evokes the cyclical flow of nature and life, warning against human incursions that irresponsibly violate an otherwise perfect system. Trentino Stephen Cagol addresses the issue of light pollution on the facade of the Cusanus Academy: Not to lose (the stars) inspired by the privileged gazes of astronauts, it invites us to reflect on how the light that allows us to see better can also blind us. A moment is enough: from the vision of the stars from our planet and of the Earth from space to a dazzling light that cancels out all awareness. For the realization of the work Cagol was confronted with astronauts such as Luke Parmitano And Reid Wiseman who will command the 2024 NASA Artemis II mission around the moon. The installation Strata by the group of five artists Xenorama, projected on the facade of the library, is a journey through the life cycle of a glacier that leads to the heart of the glacier itself, between lights and sounds. The dramatic projection Plastic Reef by Andrea Siefert on the Porta Sabiona tells through images and sounds how plastic pollution is destroying the fragile ecosystem of coral reefs.

On the Aquila bridge the South Tyroleans AliPaloma and Hartwig Thaler with River Glow they stage actors interacting with an object on the river that generates electricity through the force of the water. Almost 50 installations presented in total, including in the satellite locations of the Abbazia di Novacella and the Forte di Fortezza. All in the name of sustainability, even of the festival itself: “awareness of respect for nature and the sustainable use of water as a resource are at the heart of the festival – he says Werner Zanotti of the event – and we too do our share of homework with the goal of being energy neutral by 2024″. For this edition, the Brixen event managed to reduce energy consumption by 50%, reaching a net consumption of 1.5 MWh for the entire festival period.In comparison, a concert consumes on average 5.25 MWh and a football stadium 20 MWh per game.