Wang Jingli wangjingli0715@163.com GLOW Shenzhen 2024, a spectacular light festival, officially commenced Wednesday evening, presenting a dynamic array of light displays across the city. With the theme of “Infinite Illumination,” this year’s festival has established a main venue at the UpperHills shopping mall and its adjacent parks — Bijia Hill Park and Lianhua Hill Park — in Futian District, along with 29 additional sites in districts including Luohu, Yantian, Nanshan, Bao’an, Longhua, Pingshan, and Guangming. The festival, which will continue until Feb. 16, features 76 groups of 209 light installations that were crafted by artists from around the globe. Throughout the festival, 46 themed art events, including concerts and entertaining game carnivals, will be organized. Among the standout attractions is “BOB’s Flying with Mindflyer” at the Bijia Hill Park camp site. It is a lightweight, inflatable sculpture depicting a whimsical line-drawn character named BOB who tells his story through playful moving images. This installation has also been featured in “i light Singapore,” a leading sustainable light festival in Asia. Another crowd-pleaser at Bijia Hill Park is the “Helix Seats,” designed by Penuhaus studio from the United States. This interactive public seating area explores interpersonal interactions in public spaces. The artwork consists of two interwoven spirals, equipped with LED lights embedded within the structure to produce a striking play of light. To further boost the night economy, the festival has partnered with various shopping malls across the city, including MixC Shenzhen Bay in Nanshan District, UpperHills in Futian District, and OCT Harbour in Nanshan District, to distribute shopping vouchers and enhance the night shopping experience. | 