Miejsce
Imagine a city full of soap bubbles, where roads have been replaced by giant lawns, where fire trees grow and ice fish live. In this city backyards resemble fairy tale realms. Imagine this is Lublin during this year’s Night of Culture.
The Old Town will take on completely new colours. Nearly all city lanterns will light up in cobalt colour, clocks on the Cracow Gate will also be dressed in unusual colours and inside, the Gate will fill with soap bubbles, an inseparable element of fairy tales, dreams and imagination. But this is just the begining!
When we pass through the Cracow Gate, let’s turn right and visit the Magical Yard. You will be surprised by fairy tale furniture on tall legs, as if taken straight out of Alice in Wonderland. This charming installation, designed by Natalia Głowacka, was created with the support of Elmax – lightning experts. The unique charm of the place will be brought out by an installation made by art students of Maria Curie Skłodowska University. A few dozen cups will be discreetly hung on trees. The atmosphere of the crazy Mad Hatter’s tea party makes it one of the absolute must sees at this year’s festival.
But let us return to the main road. A few steps further we have the Rybna Gate and right behind it – Rybny Square, where Ice Team or world masters in ice carving will create an over 3-metre tall fish sculpture designed especially for Night of Culture. It will be a unique opportunity to see live how using electric saws and other tools they carve out form and the shapes in the lit-up block of ice. Everything is designed so that afer the work ends everyone will be able to examine and touch the object even on a hot summer night.
When we had enough retro dancing at Kowalska street, we can take Ku Farze street and see pure grafitti (clean grafitti, reverse grafitti). This innovative technique removes dirt off facades so that clean surface creates an image or a message. Tomasz Maped Pizoń intends to „clean” both sides of the facade at Ku Farze street, using templates with shapes of swimming fish.
Are we back on Grodzka street yet? It’s time to visit Po Farze square that features a fire tree designed by Jarosław Koziara. This metal installation over 10 metres tall refers to the legend of Leszek Czarny’s dream, among other things. The construction will include several thousands special candles which will light up inside special fiery-coloured lanterns. The artist has also added subtle sound effects so listen in.
After visiting so many fun places, you may feel tired. If so, why don’t you drop by Lubartowska Street, where instead of asphalt we will be greeted by a vibrant green lawn and a relaxation sleeve filled with rubber balls to sit on, lie on and take a rest. The roadway will transform into an inhabitants-friendly zone , where using a colourful thread we will all weave on a giant outdoor loom. This project has been created by Superblue Design from the UK and Lublin is the first Polish city that will try to implement their idea of a “Friendly City”.
If you have had enough rest, go along Lubartowska street and enjoy Old Cinema. We will see a series of short films Nighttime Cinema Cabarets and two screen adaptations of Isaac B. Singer’s works.
Old Cinema Programme:
21:15-22:00 – Nighttime Cinema Cabarets – short films.
22:00-0:00 – “The Magician of Lublin”, dir. Menahem Golan, 1979
00:00-2:15 – “Yentl”, dir. Barbra Streisand, 1983
The entire Old Town will be brimming with Magic. Visit Kowalska street to travel back in time. The programme of the Night of Culture consists of several hundred cultural events, including concerts, art exhibitions, art installations, stage plays, cinema and art in the city space. Night of Culture in Lublin is a festival which always brings new surprises. Incredible things happen. Art enlivens old or forgotten places, gates transform into light installations, squares and plazas become theatre stages and the streets of the Old Town surprise even their frequent vistors. Galleries, theatres and museums remain open until the small hours. Night of Culture inspires us to discover Lublin anew or to see it for the first time.