12 Most IG-Worthy Installations At Light To Night 2022, A Free-Entry Light Art Festival Open Till 12AM
Need a wholesome night outing idea that doesn’t involve downing pints at the bar? The annual Light To Night Festival is back for its 2022 edition to dazzle up your evenings once again. With so many light installations and projection works scattered across the Civic District, the event can understandably be confusing to navigate.
To make things easier, here’s a guide to the 12 best exhibits we've sussed out at Light To Night Festival 2022, sorted by location. These are the most Instagram-worthy ones you can make a beeline for if you’re short of time and want to whittle down your list.
Note: Most of the exhibits are open during the day, but we recommend visiting after 7pm or 7.30pm when the sky is dark for the best experience. Exhibitions within the museums are subject to various museum opening hours, but those located outdoors generally run till late, some even till midnight!
For more date and outings ideas, check out our list of 19 new things to do in Singapore in January 2022.
Read on to find out more about Light To Night 2022 in Singapore!
The Arts House
Museum opening hours: 10am - 10pm daily
#1: A Tessellation of Memories - rainbow tassels
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Go back in time to revisit forgotten bits of Singapore’s past with A Tessellation of Memories, full of lost stories to uncover from our rich history. This dark winding pathway is marked out using rainbow-coloured tassels and fabric, with infinity mirrors giving a glimpse into 6 locales of our Little Red Dot along the way.
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: The Arts House, Playden
#2: The Same Side of the Moon Always Faces Earth - 3D walk-in “horizon”
Photo from @speakcryptic via Instagram
The Same Side of the Moon Always Faces Earth is an ode to the migrant seafarers who left their own shoes for Singapore in the past, with the 3D structure depicting the ocean’s waves and the moon along the horizon. The artist also uses this to explore the idea of there being a true North - a single point that one can find solace and direction from, whether literally or metaphorically lost.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
This is a walk-in installation that can be entered from any side, and there’s also an accompanying soundscape meant to be enjoyed with headphones.
Date: Until 6 February 2022
Location: The Arts House, Lawn
#3: Fleeting Flights - whimsical light and sound show
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
While everyone’s clamouring for a spot in front of the National Gallery’s light show, there’s also a smaller-scale one further in at The Arts House called Art Skins on Monuments: Fleeting Flights, which is equally worth checking out. In fact, I personally preferred this one as the animations were more whimsical with a sort of story going on, and the music was more upbeat.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
This light and sound show repeats continuously so there’s no need to worry about missing any portions.
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: The Arts House
Asian Civilisations Museum
Museum opening hours:
Sunday to Thursday: 10am - 7pm
Friday to Saturday: 10am - 10pm
#4: As The River Flows - glowing orbs
Photo from @stanley_chee via Instagram
Aptly located in the River Room of the Asian Civilisations Museum, As The River Flows is an immersive light and sound experience that draws inspiration from the Singapore River, with a formation of glowing orbs. Look closer, and you’ll see that these colourful globes are actually made of plastic baskets - the old-school kind that you’d find at the wet market or fruit stalls.
Photo from @stanley_chee via Instagram
Date: 14, 15, 21 & 22 January 2022
Location: Asian Civilisations Museum, Level 2, River Room
#5: The River Connects - immersive media installation
Photo from @stanley_chee via Instagram
Also inspired by the Singapore River is The River Connects, which delves into the idea of human connection. The dancing patterns you see on the floor here are actually a blend of archival and 3D scanned images of the various bridges across the Singapore River, which have paved the way for trade, movement, and interaction in general.
Photo from Light To Night
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: Asian Civilisations Museum, Level 2, Foyer
National Library Building
Exhibition opening hours: 10am - 9.30pm daily
#6: Psychic Cinema 2065 - futuristic neon “theatre”
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
In true Space Objekt fashion comes Psychic Cinema 2065, a futuristic reimagination of the old Jubilee Theatre with an immersive audio-visual experience that includes light sequences and sound samples from Singapore’s old-school film era.
Photo from @perqasa via Instagram
Make sure you step through the doorway at the side for a little surprise inside, and also check out the surrounding stations for informative displays and a fun see-saw that’ll bring back some childhood fun.
Photo from @teelala via Instagram
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: National Library Building
Esplanade Park
#7: Lumba - sailboat sculptures altered by movement
Photo from @teckhua via Instagram
Photo from @teckhua via Instagram
Lumba is modelled after the sailing boats in a sea sport called kolek lumba, which was once held in this very district of Singapore many decades ago. Wave through these sailboat sculptures and watch as how this motion alters the way the light emits.
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: Esplanade Park, Queen Elizabeth Walk
National Gallery Singapore
Museum opening hours:
Monday to Thursday: 10am - 7pm
Friday to Sunday: 10am - 10pm
#8: Into Multiplicities - ethereal projections in a grand dome
Photo from Light To Night
It’s not often that one gets to enter the Rotunda Library at National Gallery Singapore, a 2-storey wonder with royal-looking Roman columns and high dome ceiling. After all, it is only open to the public on selected weekdays, and time slots are very limited. With Art Skins On Monuments: Into Multiplicities, you now get a chance to waltz into the grand library even on weekends, past regular opening hours.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
What you’ll be treated to here is an ethereal light and sound show, with projections displayed on the dome itself. Lie back in one of the many chairs available and watch as the images shift from clouds to jellyfish and abstract designs. A must-visit!
Photo from Light To Night
Read our article on the Rotunda Library here.
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: National Gallery Singapore, Level 3, Rotunda Library & Archive
#9: Harmonic Spectrum - neon-lit staircase
Photo from National Gallery Singapore
It’s pretty impossible to miss the giant letters spelling out the festival’s name, which make up the Harmonic Spectrum installation. These are set on the steps of the National Gallery, which are lit up in CMYK light strips in shades of blue, green, and red.
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: National Gallery Singapore, City Hall Steps
And this leads us to the next point…
#10: Refractioned - for chill picnic dates on a lawn
Photo from Light To Night
Checking out Harmonic Spectrum means killing two birds with one stone, as the aforementioned is set against Art Skin On Monuments: Refractioned - a large-scale light projection show spanning across the entire facade of the National Gallery. This loops consecutively from the time it starts, so there’s no need to worry about rushing down just to catch it at specific timings.
Photo from Light To Night
Don’t just stand around to watch the spectacle - get comfortable on the grounds of the sprawling Padang! The grass here is carpet grass, which is super soft and clean during dry weather, but if you’re worried about soil dirtying your clothes, you can always bring along a picnic mat. Now here’s an idea for a chill date that won’t cost you a single cent!
Photo from Light To Night
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: National Gallery Singapore, Facade
#11: Making Room - suspended geometrical structures
Photo from Light To Night
Making Room is a series of geometrical structures suspended from the ceiling of National Gallery Singapore, meant to represent the shift in our personal spaces and the mental adjustments made due to the current global situation of uncertainty.
Photo from @jerome_ng_xinhao via Instagram
It’s visible from Level 3, but is best admired from the wide steps on Level 2. During the day, natural light streams in beautifully through the semi-opaque white panels stretched across the beams. It’s equally eye-catching at night, where you’ll get to view it from a different perspective, with hints of colour brought about by the surrounding light projections outside.
Date: Until 30 June 2022
Location: National Gallery Singapore, Level 2
Padang
#12: Flight - interactive Bluetooth-enabled trellis
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
While you’re catching the projection art on the facade of National Gallery, you might as well check out Flight. Inspired by a flock of birds and their moving wings, this is an interactive piece that uses light, shadows, and colour to create the illusion of movement. Turn on the Bluetooth function of your mobile phone or other devices to trigger different light patterns!
Photo from National Gallery Singapore
Needless to say, this has become quite a popular photo spot. Instead of simply standing in front of the structure to snap a regular OOTD, try having your friend stand on the opposite side from where you’re at, with the camera lens peeking through the bars for a more avant garde effect.
Photo from GirlStyle Singapore
Date: Until 3 February 2022
Location: Padang
More fun activities in Singapore:
Share this with a friend who loves light installations!
Text by: GirlStyle SG
