Biennale for Light Art and Urban Design
Since 2002, Messe Frankfurt has organised the Luminale together with the City of Frankfurt, regional artists, institutions and light art/culture enthusiasts. An event with international appeal that regularly lights up the city centre of Frankfurt (and Offenbach) every two years, parallel to Light + Building trade fair, and transforms it into a special setting.
Like all events, the plug was literally pulled on the Luminale 2020 at the last minute at the start of the pandemic. Trade fairs and events were hit hard by the pandemic. This also applied to Messe Frankfurt, which was practically banned from working as a result of the measures and had to cope with an unprecedented drop in sales.
Luminale is largely financed by Messe Frankfurt. After the pandemic, the company's goal is to get back on its feet economically, a prerequisite for being able to finance projects such as Luminale.
Luminale has therefore been suspended in 2022 and 2024; a decision on the future will be made in due course and information will be provided by Messe Frankfurt.
Luminale – more than a light festival
As a Biennial for Light Art and Urban Design, since 2018, the Luminale has pursued its goal of creating a popular and high-quality program in terms of both art and content, as well as making a sustainable contribution to urban design.
Thus, the city and urban space are not only a stage, but a major component of the festival itself. Projects that engage with urban visions of the future at the interfaces of light, architecture, technology, ecology and social interaction in the city, and an accompanying, transdisciplinary dialogue on related issues, make this a tangible experience.