The BEACON lights up The Culture + Entertainment District this month

CMLC and Victoria Park BIA partner with B!G ART to bring giant installation to The C+E during Chinook Blast

The newest immersive installation in The Culture + Entertainment District is a can’t-miss – partly because it’s too big to ignore! Standing just shy of 15 feet tall, The BEACON is a giant pillar of light made from over 60 thousand-litre water totes and a series of interactive choreographed light, sound and video shows, all imagined, designed and built by local art collective B!G ART.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Victoria Park BIA for the first time to bring a unique immersive art installation to The Culture + Entertainment District during Chinook Blast,” said Kate Thompson, President and CEO of CMLC. “CMLC’s role in The C+E, as it is in East Village, is as much about master planning and delivering pillar projects as it is about placemaking and thinking outside the box to foster vibrant, active and inclusive communities – art experiences like The BEACON and Chinook Blast, and partners like Victoria Park BIA, help us do exactly that.”

David Low, Executive Director of Victoria Park BIA, agrees, saying, “Public art and immersive experiences like The BEACON have played an important role in Victoria Park’s evolution as a thriving cultural hub. The venues, retailers and programming that will come to life in The C+E in the coming years will complement what we’ve built in Victoria Park. We are excited to be partnering with CMLC for the first of many collaborations.”

The BEACON features 12 seemingly normal doors. When opened, 10 doors are mapped in a choreographed light, sound and video show – a portal to another place in time and space – and every swing of the door reveals a new journey for you to embark on. The challenge is to find the two doors that grant you entry to the centre of the installation where you will find an immersive sensory experience, animated by unique visuals and soundscapes that deliver a new experience with every cycle. The centre spire is made of nearly 3,000 pixels creating an infinity video wall and spire of light stretching into the ether.

The BEACON will shine its light from February 11 to 27 and is open daily from 10am to 10pm adjacent to Enoch Park at 12th Ave and Macleod Trail SE. It was created by B!G ART for Chinook Blast and is presented by Victoria Park BIA in The Culture + Entertainment District.