NewZNew (Chandigarh) : The story of life began with light and in the same spirit, ‘The Story of Light’, (SOL) Festival, India’s first science-meets-art festival, which was inaugurated in Panaji, one of the most beautiful capital cities in the country, triggered a domino effect of lively excitement with its unique offerings, which included eye-catching installations, outdoor cookouts, light-inspired art and interesting workshops.
The festival, which has been conceptualised under the aegis of The International Year of Light and Light-based Technologies, 2015 (IYL 2015), a project of the United Nations, will be spread over four days from January 14 – 18, 2015 and is being organized in partnership with the Corporation of the City of Panjim
The aim of the organisers is to raise awareness about the breakthroughs in light science, its applications and its importance to humankind. The Story of Light is the first art and science convergence in the form of a festival in India.
The inauguration ceremony, where CCP commissioner Sanjith Rodrigues was the chief guest, was an interesting affair complete with an enthralling performance by a group of fire jugglers from Auroville, FLAMES.
“The Story of Light is a unique social and interactive platform for scientific learning and appreciation of the arts. The event, where scientists, artists, educators collaborate for the benefit of the public, seamlessly integrates into the vision for Panaji city,” Rodrigues said.
Adding to it, Mr Damodar Naik, Chairperson, Entertainment Society of Goa said, “We are really happy to host the fist arts-meets-science festival in Goa and in Panjim. I would like to congratulate the organisers of the festival Jaya Ramchandani and Nash Paul D’Souza on their achievement and would like to thank them for bringing the festival in Goa.”
Mr. Pramod Sawant, Chairman, GSIDC, who was present at the inaugural ceremony added, “It is really proud moment for Goa to be the venue for The Story of Light festival. Jaya and Nash have done a really great job of organising the whole festival.”
The festival is in the process of transforming the two-kilometre stretch along the stunning River Mandovi and its nearby historic locations and gardens into a creative, entertaining and educational space. The program includes visual play, dance performances, installations with light and colour, photography workshops, and live projections, all directed at teaching people something about the universe in a fun and interactive way. A children’s area with unique and educational activities, a screenings tent and a concert stage adds to the festivities.
[blockquote author=”– said John Dudley, Chairman, International Year of Light 2015 Steering Committee.” pull=”pullright”]”We believe The Story of Light will be a truly unique festival as it showcases light across disciplines. By using scientists and artists in such an interesting collaborative manner, it is one of its kind on the IYL calendar”[/blockquote]
Day one was just an exciting sample of what is to follow over the three subsequent days.
Clockwork Blues, an experimental storytelling project was presented by Viktor Furiani and Samvida Nanda near the Old GMC complex is a unique but visually stunning sight, which cultivates lights to bring life to a Paper Theatre folded in a book. It is a multimodal art installation that is intuitive, accessible, and reactive to its participants and environment.
Alongside is Abhiyan Humane’s cyanotype printing workshop, which allows exposure to ultraviolet light from the sun to create predetermined images on canvases made from cloth or paper, as the day progresses. Images dipped in chemical solutions placed on large scales around the city gradually come to life with the passage of time.
For those keen on more modest pursuits like cooking, the Goa Energy Development Agency organized a workshop on solar cooking, where uncooked food brought along by the participants was cooked in 25 solar cookers set up in an installation space on Miramar beach. Instead of sweating it out in front of a gas stove, the participants could stroll along the beach as their food is cooked in the solar gadgets.
Over 45 artists and scientists from 14 countries, namely Australia, Brazil, The Czech Republic, Italy, Japan, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, the UK, and the US have converged in Goa to unravel the mysteries of light during India’s first science-meets-art festival, where they are in the process of creating interactive installations, conducting unique workshops and performances right on the streets of Panaji.
Goa’s very own noted artist Subodh Kerkar too is part of The Festival of Light. His installation Many Colours, One World is expected to question the reality and the very definition of colour.
The festival is powered by Dynel Lights, a proudly Indian hi tech brand of LED lights and creators of innovative, high quality and affordable smart lighting products.
Festival line-up and further details are available on www.thestoryoflight.org
About The Story of Light
The Story of Light (SOL) is a public, educational festival for the International Year of Light 2015 adopted by the UN. The year 2015 has been declared The International Year of Light and Light based Technologies by the UN, and SOL marks one of the first large scale international events in their calendar. It is also the first science-meets-art festival to be conceived and hosted in India.The festival employs light—its beauty and universality and its connections with science, technology, nature, culture, spirituality, history, and cosmology—as a medium to change perspectives and show reality just a little bit differently.
Visit www.thestoryoflight.org for festival lineup and other details.
