“Staro Rīga 2026” invites everyone to be together in the moments of light

On the occassion of the Independence Day of Latvia everyone is invited to experience shared moments of light and positive emotions while viewing and enjoying light installations created by Latvian and international light artists. The “Staro Rīga” festival of light will take place over four days – from 15 to 18 November, every evening from 17:00 to 23:00.

During this time the streets of Riga and parks will be illuminated by a wide variety of light installations, audiovisual artworks and video projections on building facades. This year festival programme features 52 light installations.

The theme of the “Staro Rīga 2026” light festival is “unum momentum – that one moment”. In developing their proposals for this year’s festival programme and the exhibition concepts for the routes of light, the light artists and creative groups reflect on significant moment, exploring it through visual storytelling in a range of light – art forms, formats and genres, using multimedia and interdisciplinary approaches. That one moment that changes the world – whether the world at large or someone’s inner world. A moment when the next step is taken, when a choice is made. A moment before or after a significant event, a fleeting moment with its own imagery, emotions and poetry. The moment that is happening now, here with all of us together surrounded by light as we celebrate our anniversary together. The emotional essence of the festival theme is conveyed through words of poet Imants Ziedonis: “I am nothing if I do not have the light within me which people call love.”

The main axis of the “Staro Rīga 2026” route is the Daugava River, with light installations placed on both banks. The installations form circles of light that define the areas where objects belonging to a unified artistic concept are located, creating routes for both shorter and longer walks.

On the left bank of the Daugava, the festival route starts at the Castle of Light (the National Library of Latvia) and streches along the Mūkusalas promenade. On the right bank, the festival route connects the Spīķeri territory by the Central Market and Viesturdārzs Park and includes in its extention the Old Riga and the area stretching from the Ave Sol Concert Hall to Kronvalda Park, which is divided into several light routes. The festival route is comprised of seven light – arch exhibitions created by creative groups, works by emerging artists from the Academy of Art of Latvia and the Latvian College of Culture of the Academy of Culture of Latvia, as well as individual light installations united by the festival theme and route. In total the festival’s route is almost five kilometres long.

More than two thirds of the festival’s main programme consist of new works by Latvian light artists. For the first time the festival will present installation “Voices of the Grand Trees” at the foot of the Freedom Monument. On 18 November, the environmental installation will become the stage for the festive concert. Its’ visual structure will remain unchanged, but it will be enriched by light performance at the end of the concert.

The programme also features international light artists. The internationally renowned Hungarian light artist Laszlo Zolt Bordos has created a special work for our festival – a large-scale light installation ASCEND on the facade of the Castle of Light (the National Library of Latvia) conveying the message: “Art lifts higher. Art is a revelation illuminated by light.”

An interactive installation by Norwegian light artist Anastasia Isachen will be presented in Pils Square. Combining art and science, it raises profound questions about our relationship with the environment.

On the facade of the Riga Congress Hall, the Hungarian creative group “Lightspray Visual” (Fényszóró Visual) will present a projection using specially designed powerful analogue projectors and kinetic mechanisms.

In Viesturdārzs Park a kinetic sculptural artwork by French light artist Sebastien Lefevre SOLEIL NUIT (“Sun at Night”) will be shown, comprised of more than 5000 mirrored elements.

The festival programme also includes seven installations created by the students of the Academy of Art of Latvia and four light installations produced by the Latvian College of Culture at the Latvian Academy of Culture in collaboration with students at European university alliance from nine countries.

This year the visual identity for the “Staro Rīga” festival of light is created by designer Dace Sūna, whose work explores light with a particular focus on optical phenomena. The festival’s visual identity has been developed by photographing light experiments created in a studio, capturing real transient optical phenomena produced by light refraction and reflection as they interact with materials and the atmosphere.

The concept behind the festival’s visual identity is Momentum lucis, or “A Moment of Light”, echoes the theme of the “Staro Rīga” festival of light, “unum momentum – that one moment”. When light encounters glass, lenses and mirrored surfaces, it reveals itself for a moment in unexpected forms and transformations. This reflects the essence of the festival – the meeting of art, design, technology and creativity, through which light transforms the urban environment for a few nights and becomes a shared, unique experience.
Graphic design for the visual identity by Matīss Zvaigzne.