Every year, since 2011, the Circle of Light Festival has been held in Moscow, during which the architectural space of the city will be transformed by the hands of lighting designers and professionals in the field of 2D and 3D graphics.
The facades of iconic buildings will be transformed into something extraordinary, painted with the bright colors of a light show and show completely different and unimaginable landscapes and stories.
The festival originates from the city of Lyon in France at the end of the 17th century, and later finds popularity throughout Europe.
In 2002, Anton Chukaev (Moscow artist) sent a request to the Moscow Culture Committee to hold such an event, but only 9 years later the festival debuted, which was recognized and received annual status.
Light show © Larisa Kiseleva
Venue of the Grebnoy Canal festival “Circle of Light 2019”
Events at this site will be held according to the following schedule:
- September 20 from 20:30 – opening of the “Circle of Light 2019” festival and demonstration of the musical.
- September 21 from 19:45 – repeat of the musical.
- September 22 from 19:45 – repeat of the musical.
- September 24 from 20:30 – “Code of Unity” program and closing of the festival.
The opening of the festival will take place, as mentioned above, on September 20, 2021 at 20:30. The organizers have prepared many surprises for this day.
Firstly, this is a powerful set that will be located on a floating stage, where the action of the musical, called “Seven Notes,” will unfold.
The uniqueness of the musical lies in the fact that the plot shows the life of ordinary people with their everyday problems. But special attention should be given to how he demonstrates this! A huge amount of professional lighting and music equipment, a huge frame that forms a bridge across the canal, which forms part of the scenery, namely LED panels on which the visuals and videos that make up the scenery for the musical will be shown.
At the end of the performance there is a pyrotechnic show.
For the next two days, as written in the schedule, the musical will be repeated for those who did not have time or were unable to attend the opening.
And on September 24, at the closing of the Circle of Light 2019 festival, you will be able to watch the spectacular popular science program “Code of Unity.” The main goal of the program, through an appeal to history, to human DNA and to many other aspects of life, is to show how people form a single nation.
The festival will close with a mega fireworks display with projectiles reaching a caliber of 400 mm - so it will be loud and bright!
How to get to the Rowing Canal?
By public transport:
1. From Krylatskoye metro station:
Walking through the Krylatsky Hills park is approximately 2.3 km.
Bus T19 to the Krylatsky Most stop and from there 500 meters on foot.
2. From Molodezhnaya metro station:
Walk along Yartsevskaya Street towards Rublevskoye Highway (then it turns into Krylatskaya Street) approximately 2.2 km.
Bus 229 to the “Grebnoy Canal” stop and from there about 200 meters on foot.
By car:
As with any mass event, we do not recommend coming to the festival by car. But, if you have already decided, then you need to enter the address in Yandex.Navigator: Krylatskaya street, building 2 - and it will build a route to the parking lot. It’s big there, but there will be even more people willing.
Theater Square venue
Events at this site will be held according to the following schedule:
- September 20 - 24 from 19:30 to 23:00 - various video mapping shows will be held here.
On Teatralnaya Square, as part of the Circle of Light 2019 festival, three facades of the theaters will be used at once: Molodezhny, Bolshoi and Small, and some will also be broadcast to other planes.
Coincidentally, 2021 is the year of “Theatre”. Naturally, the organizers of the show on Teatralnaya Square took this into account in the program script, so a short story dedicated to the Russian Theater will be shown here.
As part of the “Circle of Light 2019” festival, doomsdays by video mappers, finalists of the “Art Vision” competition from the program called “Classic” will be demonstrated here on the facades of theaters. And also, visitors to the site will be able to see the end of the world from past years, which were also shown at the festival.
How to get to Theater Square?
Metro:
Metro station "Teatralnaya" - exit to the city, follow the sign for theaters and you are there.
By car:
You can come here, but there will be nowhere to park your car, so this method is best considered if you plan to take a taxi. Those rare and always busy parking lots for an extortionate 380 rubles/hour are here in negligible quantities.
The most spectacular place in the capital for the New Year at VDNKh
VDNKh is considered the brightest and most memorable place for the New Year. About 300 light compositions will be built on the territory of the exhibition center. Here you can see not only sculptures and interesting lighting of buildings, but also a real luminous garden.
Glowing dandelions grow in the field here:
There is no need to look for a New Year's mood at VDNKh. It is present everywhere:
Kolomenskoye site
Events of the Circle of Light 2019 festival at this site will be held according to the following schedule:
- September 20 – 24 from 19:30 to 23:00 – light and music program “Fairy Tale Park”.
- September 22, 20:00 – a festive concert by Dmitry Malikov will take place.
As part of the Fairy Tale Park program, all the main buildings and structures of Kolomenskoye Park will be transformed for these five days with the help of lighting equipment.
To give the park a fabulous feel, a program will be presented in which glowing people will perform magnificent fiery dances.
You will also be met by characters from various children's fairy tales, and you will be able to see puppets.
And on Sunday evening, from 20:00, Dmitry Malikov will perform a festive concert on the stage of the park.
How to get to Kolomenskoye Park?
Metro:
You need to go to the Kolomenskaya or Kashirskaya metro station, then walk a little.
By car:
There will be a lot of cars, so it’s better to take the metro. However, there are several parking lots near the Kolomenskoye Museum-Reserve. Here are their GPS coordinates:
- 55.673467, 37.683261
- 55.652950, 37.655781
Or park along Novinki Street (paid parking).
Until what date will the New Year's illumination last?
Utility workers begin decorating Moscow from the end of November. In early December, the first Christmas trees appear on the streets and squares of the capital. Then the installation of lighting structures and installations begins. Private shops, restaurants and cafes are tasked with decorating their premises themselves.
By December 15, the decoration of the capital ends and the New Year season opens. Moscow begins to sparkle with all the colors of the rainbow. This immediately affects the mood of Muscovites. More and more citizens appear on the streets of the city. On weekends, residents of the capital go out with their entire families to the evening promenade to get acquainted with the new ideas of designers and lighting artists. Dismantling of illuminations begins immediately after the Old New Year.
Ostankino Park site
Events of the Circle of Light 2019 festival at this site will be held according to the following schedule:
- September 20 – 24 from 19:30 to 23:00 – there will be a program called “Geometry of Light”
A unique program “Geometry of Light” will be held in Ostankino Park. The name of the program is not at all accidental. Artistic lighting will be installed in such a way as to create unusual effects using the landscape. Some of the effects will create the illusion that the landscape has completely changed, although, of course, no one will change it.
All lovers of artistic light, and simply connoisseurs, must visit the park to feel all the magic of light that the Circle of Light festival will give!
How to get to Ostankino Park?
By public transport:
We arrive at the VDNH metro station. Exit to the city from the first carriage from the center. We leave the lobby and see the Museum of Cosmonautics. We walk along the fence of the museum, cross the road and see the tram tracks.
Hence there are three options:
- We take any tram heading towards Ostankino and go to the end - from there it’s two steps to the park.
- We take the monorail and go in the same direction to the “Telecenter” stop. We get down from the platform and go around the pond towards the temple standing nearby.
- Walk through the territory of VDNKh, or through First Ostankinskaya Street. 20 minutes walk - for lovers of hiking.
By car:
Parking lots are all located along the road, they are paid and always busy on weekends and holidays. There is also no particular hope for parking near nearby shopping centers, because... they are insignificantly small.
How Moscow is decorated in winter
Currently, the colorful lights of Moscow are visible even from space. The lighting design of the capital becomes richer and more diverse every year. During the New Year period, there are more than 500 volumetric light structures in the city. Within Moscow, 1.5 thousand luminous arches are being built, about 3 thousand trees are illuminated. All this takes approximately 300 kilometers of garlands.
Not only the center, but also other areas of the capital are decorated brightly and festively. The main highways of the metropolis are also lit with New Year's lights:
- Leninsky Prospekt:
- Kutuzov Avenue;
- New Arbat;
- Garden Ring road;
- Tverskaya street, etc.
Numerous squares and parks in Moscow are filled with festive light. Lighting in different areas has its own style. Each street is decorated in a special way. It cannot be confused with another. We are talking about the color scheme and the location of light structures. New Year's decorations are carried out by lighting artists who use the latest advances in technology.
On the eve of the New Year holidays, the colors of the streets change from warm to cold tones. In December and February, the color palette becomes lilac, white, purple, dove, blue or silver. This creates a frost effect on many streets. This background lifts the festive mood. It seems that the city is in a fairy tale. Many squares and boulevards resemble a forest.
The City Hall explained why such great attention is paid to street lighting. Officials believe that the bright decoration of the city helps Muscovites more easily tolerate the lack of daylight and creates a festive mood among citizens.
Victory Park site on Poklonnaya Hill
Events of the Circle of Light 2019 festival at this site will be held according to the following schedule:
- September 20 – 24 from 19:30 to 23:00 – video mapping shows will be held.
The highlight of the show will be a light and music video mapping show called “A Space Odyssey”. Moreover, this will be the real premiere of this show, during which you will be able to fly into space and get acquainted with very mysterious phenomena. And all this will happen using the walls of the Victory Museum building and the surrounding landscape.
In addition to the “Space” Odyssey, you will be able to see last year’s military show, which has historical overtones at the time of our country’s participation in various wars.
And, of course, it will not be complete without the performance of the finalists of “Art Vision” - this is an international competition dedicated to video mapping and light and music performances. Programs participating in the “Modern” nomination will be demonstrated.
Accordingly, it will be beautiful, interesting, educational, diverse and unusual! Therefore, it is also necessary to visit this “Circle of Light” site.
How to get to Victory Park?
Metro:
The most correct and convenient way is to get to the Park Pobedy metro station and go upstairs.
By car:
Parking coordinates near the park: 55.735418, 37.517170.
The parking lot has a limited number of parking spaces; you can park along General Ermolov and Poklonnaya streets (for a fee), carefully looking at the signs. In some places there are areas where parking is prohibited! Parking along Kutuzovsky Prospekt is prohibited and is guarded by green tow trucks.
Site "Polytechnic Museum"
Events of the Circle of Light 2019 festival at this site will be held according to the following schedule:
- September 20 – 24 from 19:30 to 23:00 – video mapping shows will be held near the Polytechnic Museum.
The museum itself is still closed for reconstruction, but this will not stop the organizers from telling the fascinating history of the Polytechnic Museum building - one of the oldest buildings in Moscow.
Moreover, the show will be divided into two sections.
In the first section you can learn a lot of historical information about how the building was built, what vicissitudes took place in the life of the museum. You will learn about the best times of the museum and the landmark exhibitions taking place there.
And then there will be a second section.
In the second part, you will be able to take a glimpse into the bright future of science and find out what discoveries it is on the verge of. And also to lift the veil of secrecy of the museum, what it should become in the future. The future was supposed to come in 2021, then in 2021, and now we are promised 2021. Well, this should be very interesting!
How to get to the Polytechnic Museum?
Metro:
The museum is located next to the Lubyanka and Kitay-Gorod metro stations.
By car:
It is better not to consider anything other than a taxi as a car. There are very few parking lots along the street, paid, expensive and chronically occupied.
“Digital October” platform
at this location on September 21 and 22 , which will include lectures, meetings with experts and the exchange of experience in the field of video mapping.
Experts in this field will share their experience in organizing large-scale events, for example, those organized as part of the Circle of Light 2019 festival. They will talk about the specifics, as well as difficulties that may not be immediately visible, but arise in the process.
Metro:
Kropotkinskaya metro station, then we go around the Cathedral of Christ the Savior and cross the river across the bridge. We go down from the bridge to the right and walk along Bersenevskaya embankment to house 6, building 3.
By car:
Parking along Bersenevskaya embankment costs 380 rubles per hour. There is a parking lot with coordinates 55.739682, 37.609238. But it can be blocked with barriers at any time.
Venue "Concert Hall "Arbat Hall"
On September 21, from 22:00 to 00:00, a cool light and music party will be held in the Arbat Hall Concert Hall. At this party, competitions are planned as part of the “Art Vision” competition in the “VJing” category.
Thus, VJs from different countries will compete to win this competition. So all fans of club music - welcome!
How to get to Arbat Hall?
Metro:
From the Smolenskaya metro station on the Arbatsko-Pokrovskaya line, you need to walk along Novinsky Boulevard to the intersection with Novy Arbat. There will be Arbat Hall on the corner.
If you arrive at the Smolenskaya metro station on the Filyovskaya line, you will also need to cross Novinsky Boulevard to the other side.
By car:
Concert hall address: st. Novy Arbat, 21, building 1. The nearest parking is 55.752429, 37.586710. In other places there are parking along the road, but there are few of them and they are paid. In general, as it should be for the center of Moscow - it’s easier by metro.
Technical equipment
Festive decoration of the city is economical and safe. LED strips are mainly used, the voltage of which does not exceed 24 volts. Today, several thousand lighting elements are used in Moscow. With the onset of warm weather, many garlands are not dismantled. This helps save huge amounts of money.
Speaking about the New Year's decoration of the city, it is worth mentioning the architectural and artistic lighting of buildings. It is believed that the capital looks more attractive at night.
Such beauty is achieved through the use of a huge number of lighting equipment:
| Number of outdoor lighting poles: | About 300 thousand |
| Number of lamps: | Around 400 thousand |
| Number of lighting devices: | Exceeds 118 thousand units. |
When lighting the street, the architectural features of the object are taken into account. For example, the color palette of Tverskaya Street is similar to the lighting near the Bolshoi Theater. Many buildings on the highways that go from the center to the residential areas will sparkle with new colors. For example, the section from the Moscow Ring Road to the third transport ring will be equipped with 7.6 thousand lamps. An additional 90 buildings will be illuminated. The lighting on Pyatnitskaya, Yakimanka, Pokrovka, Maroseyka, Novy Arbat, and the Boulevard Ring will also look new.
Improving lighting will not require new capacity. Energy efficient LED lamps will be used. Light compositions are created through the use of warm and white tones. The tops of buildings are illuminated more intensely. Floodlights are installed so as not to disturb residents.
In the near future, 1.7 thousand buildings in Moscow will be additionally illuminated. All of them are located along pedestrian areas or highways.
When decorating the city, much attention is paid to illuminating the bridges. The following bridges are especially decorated:
- Maly Krasnokholmsky;
- Ustinsky;
- Bolshoy Moskvoretsky;
- Bolshoi Kamenny and others.
20 main bridges are equipped with over 4.5 thousand LED lamps. They are more durable and consume 2.5 times less energy. Next up is the installation of smart lights. They change the brightness of the lighting if the weather is cloudy. All lamps in Moscow are turned on and off in the Mossvet control room.
