2025 City of Vancouver Award of Excellence Recipient - Entrepreneurial Cornerstone
Canuck Place Light a Life Campaign

12th Annual Lumière Festival in Downtown Vancouver

by Rebecca Bollwitt

Sponsored by the Lumière Festival

The 12th annual Lumière Festival celebrates light, art, and community over a weekend in Downtown Vancouver, Gastown, and the West End. Enjoy illuminating artworks and installations, light-based projections, and dynamic performances available in public spaces and at no cost.

Lumière Festival Vancouver - West End - Miss604 Photo
Lumière Festival Vancouver 2023 West End / Photo by Miss604

Lumière Festival in Downtown Vancouver

  • Dates: November 13 to 16, 2025 from 5:00pm to 9:30pm nightly
  • Admission: Free, rain or shine

This year’s festival is guided by the theme “Unity”, a reflection on the connections that bring people together across communities and cultures. 

“In a time when the world can often feel divided, the Lumière Festival is about connection, collaboration, and shared experiences,” says Shelley Hayashi, Board President of Lumière Festival. “Our team has been working hard to put together an amazing slate of light-based artworks this year with a variety of immersive and accessible installations.” 

There will not be an official opening night event like previous years, but you can enjoy all of the activations around the West End, Downtown, and in Gastown over four nights. Enjoy the city and brighten dark nights when you visit these dazzling installations.

Lumière Festival Vancouver - Downtown Vancouver - Miss604 Photo
Lumière Festival Vancouver 2023 Downtown Vancouver / Miss604 Photo

Locations & Featured Installations

West End

Jim Deva Plaza (Presented in partnership with The EggArts Society) 

  • Jim Deva Plaza will debut DecaDance, a ten-sided decagon pavilion with mirrored walls and a spinning LED pole, creating an immersive and dazzling experience. 

1800 Davie Plaza at English Bay 

  • Squamish artist Melanie Lazelle of The Wilder, transforms 1800 Davie Plaza into an illuminated coral reef titled Memories of Colour. The installation celebrates the beauty of the ocean while addressing coral bleaching and the urgent need for environmental care. 

Full schedule and map

Downtown Vancouver

Vancouver Art Gallery & Surrounding Plazas 

  • Iridescence Niko Tiainen (Finland): A generative projection piece exploring perception and environmental transformation. Tiainen, the artist behind last year’s acclaimed Translucens, returns to Vancouver with a new installation. 
  • Apogee Chalk River Labs (Australia): An experiential projection and sound installation. 
  • Painting Mirror Maxime Touroute (France): Interactive video mapping that transforms audience photos into artistic styles. Presented in collaboration with Alliance Française and the French Embassy as part of V-UNFRAMED (November 21–23).
  • Poems of Positivity Orolosky Studio: Traveling sculptures that invite the public to co-create uplifting community poems. 
  • CONVERGE Interim Collective: A responsive ambient laser installation mapping shifting geometric patterns. 

Gastown

Blood Alley Square

  • The Human Network JK Arts Initiative (Canada): An interactive digital media installation exploring human connectivity and collective strength. 

About the Lumière Festival

Founded in 2014, Lumière Festival Vancouver Society is a non-profit organization dedicated to transforming winter through light, art, music, and dance. The free annual festival enriches public spaces by fostering community engagement and cultural experiences, breaking down barriers and connecting people across generations and cultures. Follow the festival on Instagram for more info.

Previous Years’ Highlights

Browse free/low-cost events around Vancouver »

Follow Miss604Holidays this season for the latest arts and culture activities, attraction and event news »

Advertisement
Current Contests on Miss604
View a complete list of contests

More Recent Posts