In the cold, dark winters of The Netherlands, “gezelligheid” becomes more than just a comforting notion; it is a way of living that brings people together. The Dutch idea of cosiness is a feeling rooted in shared moments and a sense of belonging, going far beyond physical notions. In these shared moments of community, light plays a central role, offering hope and brightness during the season’s long nights. Whether it’s the glow of a candle in a window, the soft light emanating from a café late at night, or the dazzling art on display for the Amsterdam Light Festival. In its 13th edition, the darkness is dispelled into an invitation to come together for the design festival.

The event taking place from November 28, 2024 - January 19, 2025, coincides this year with Amsterdam’s 750th anniversary, with 27 unique light artworks created by contemporary artists and designers offering interpretations of Rituals. With spheres in a rainbow of colours, Mumbai-based ACKM enthrals people with a spritely dance of light for their installation, The Lite of Passage. Four hundred orbs surround a bridge like mist on a winter’s evening, reflecting off of the quiet water that flows underneath. As one stands on the bridge, one finds themselves suspended between the light art, an array of hues and colours—flickering and reacting to their movement like fireflies.

Rituals signal vital moments within communities. Whether this be the simple occasion of birthdays or festivals that herald changes in the season, these practices often embody transitions. They offer a sense of hope in periods of change, often accompanied by glowing lights. These might be the fireworks for new beginnings, candles illuminating gentle release or even the midsummer fires welcoming the solstice. In winter, when the world feels quieter and slower, these shared rituals—gathering around in warm togetherness, strolling through illuminated streets, or pausing on a bridge to admire reflections, in the water and within oneself—help individuals and communities reconnect. They harken back to age-old traditions when light marked important milestones, from solstice celebrations to festivals of renewal, symbolising resilience and hope. This is what the Amsterdam Light Festival hopes to highlight. Each offers its understanding of light and its vitality for those moments that bring us together.

For the Indian design studio headed by Aneri Mehta and Khushali Chawda, the design event presents itself as a playground, where they use lighting design to invoke a sense of connection to the city and the diverse visitors to the space. Their immersive installation aims to craft an experience that stands as a tactile metaphor for one’s rituals of transition and brings visitors together in a shared moment of vibrance. Dubbed The Lite of Passage it interprets this year’s theme for the annual event with an interactive experience that glows and pulsates as visitors move through it, transforming the space into a symbolic gateway for personal and communal transitions. The Indian designers take the deeply human idea of transition, change and evolution as a metaphor to transform Amsterdam’s public space into a place for connection. While the passage comes alive at night with its myriad colours; in the daylight the installation throws evocative shadows. Playing with natural light, clever lighting design and form, it transforms an everyday space into something magical.

For the architecture of a city that is governed by water, channels and canals, the bridges are the constructive musculature holding the city skeleton together. To this end, most artworks are situated on the city’s iconic bridges; transforming these spaces into more than mere structures—they become places of meeting, pause and shared moments. Whether it’s the soft flicker of streetlights casting reflections on the canals or the mesmerising displays of the Festival, the bridges offer the perfect vantage point to experience the physical and emotional landscapes of the city. These crossings, like the seasons themselves, represent transitions. They are liminal spaces—places between neighbourhoods, between stories, between people. The bridge, therefore, is this threshold between two places. A threshold where the Mumbai-based studio plays with intangible elements like light and shadow to cast visitors into a trance and beckon them to immerse themselves into the soft glow of their interactive installation as well as the festival.

The bridge where the lighting installation is located stands as a symbol of both literal and emotional passage, inviting those who cross to reflect, connect and share in the collective experience of a city built on movement, connection and light. “The Lite of Passage is not just an installation; it is a manifesto for the power of design. By combining the tangible with the intangible; light with shadow, motion with stillness and the individual with the collective, [we aimed to] craft a space that transcends boundaries,” the duo notes. “It is a reminder that rituals, whether ancient or modern, continue to shape our identities and connect us.”

With cutting-edge lighting mechanics and a mathematically engineered structure that enwraps the timeless bridges of the city, present, responsive and iterative technology meets immutable structures of stability and connection. The orbs that hum a glow in the night, cast ephemeral shadows during the day. Standing under these, visitors can witness a temporal play of light and shadow. A performance takes place on the communal stage that is, the bridge. Visitors are not only viewing art as they pass through its brightly lit hallways; they are taking part in a story of transformation that respects the past while welcoming the future. The Lite of Passage serves as a bright bridge that unites hearts and minds from all generations and cultures in a society that is frequently characterised by division.

 (Text by Arryan Siingh, Intern at STIR)