River of Light 2026 installations and where to find them

River of Light returns to Liverpool next month with 12 works unveiled for the free illuminated art trail’s ninth edition.

The event takes place nightly from October 23 to November 1 and this year has the theme Together.

Delivered by Culture Liverpool, the 2026 festival will focus on how light brings people closer in a joyful way.

This year the route has also been expanded with new locations in Williamson Square and St Paul’s Square in the business district.

Cllr Harry Doyle, Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet Member for Health, Wellbeing and Culture said: “I’m proud that Culture Liverpool continues to stage something so ambitious that is free, accessible, and enjoyable for residents and visitors of all ages.

“In line with this year’s theme of Together, I hope friends and families are already planning their trips to come and see these amazing artworks that transform our city into a spectacular giant outdoor gallery.” 

The 12 artworks in the River of Light 2026 trail are:

The Anooki by Moetu & David – Liverpool Town Hall

The Anooki are two playful characters, a boy and a girl who are inseparable. Together, they overcome challenges and celebrate the universal values of friendship, kindness, cooperation and living together.

Since their ice floe disappeared, they have travelled the world, transforming public spaces into places of wonder, encounter and shared emotion, spreading their message: our planet is precious.

In Les Timides, the two Anooki play hide-and-seek with the public from behind the grand columns of Liverpool Town Hall. Visitors are invited to move through the space to discover each character, becoming active participants in their game.

Artists Moetu & David met at design school in Paris and then teamed up in 2000 to launch digital design studio Inook.

For 20 years, they have been creating innovative, creative, and agile interactive projects for companies, brands, products, and institutions seeking a strong identity. 

Flower Power by Spectaculaires – Exchange Flags

Seven large faceted flowers scatter thousands of colourful, shimmering reflections across the ground, surrounding architecture and visitors while an interactive jukebox invites the public to select tracks from a diverse playlist.

Each piece is synchronised with a unique lighting sequence, creating a succession of immersive atmospheres.

Although one visitor chooses the music, everyone experiences the transformation together. The seven individual flowers only reveal their full beauty when their reflections combine, symbolising how individuals create a stronger and more vibrant community when united.

Spectaculaires – Allumeurs d’Images has been designing and producing visual and sound experiences for more than 35 years that showcase heritage sites, transform spaces and bring audiences together.

Combining live performance, visual arts and new technologies, the company creates original productions blending video mapping, lighting design, monumental projections, interactive installations, spatial audio and immersive experiences.

Loop by Olivier Girouard and Jonathan Villeneuve – St Paul’s Square

LOOP is an interactive installation composed of six giant zoetropes that bring short flipbook-style films to life through movement, light and sound.

Created in collaboration with London-based British Sri Lankan artist Murugiah, each animated sequence draws visitors into his colourful, surreal visual universe, blending playful storytelling with bold graphic design.

Inspired by the zoetrope, a 19th-century optical toy considered one of the earliest forms of animation, LOOP combines elements of the music box, the zoetrope and the railway handcar.

Visitors sit inside each giant wheel and pump the lever together to set the cylinder in motion. As the images begin to spin, a carefully synchronized strobe effect creates the illusion of moving pictures, echoing the magic of early cinema.

Olivier Girouard and Jonathan Villeneuve are part of Ekumen, a Montreal-based production company working in the audio and media arts.

Today I Love You by Massimo Uberti – Liverpool Parish Church

“Today I Love You.” A simple yet magical sentence, as if from a dream you don’t want to end. But it also raises questions: you might love me today, but what about tomorrow?

Uberti has written the sentence in light. The words have thus become matter. This way you can enjoy the uplifting words again and again.

That is exactly what Uberti has in mind: "It is a sentence that I hope will be uttered by everyone every day."

Italian light artist Massimo Uberti, who died in April, was known for minimalistic and sculptural light installations, creating art out of simplistic shapes, often symmetrical and crafted with neon lighting. 

Invisible Cities by Atelier Sisu – Pier Head North

Invisible Cities celebrates the space in between, the holes in experience, the windows into another’s life and the tapestry of layered experience that exists within the metropolitan world.Constructed from rolled and shaped sheet-aluminium, the artwork is designed to be light-weight, modular and adaptable. The brushed surface of each module diffuses light gently across the curvatures that make up the artwork, allowing the gentle gradient of colour to blend and dance across the form.When arranged together, the four modules create an immersive space that encapsulates the audience within the artwork.

Peruvian artist Renzo B Larriviere and Australian artist Zara Pasfield founded Atelier Sisu in 2020 after years of collaboration as independent artists in the medium of experiential sculpture. Atelier Sisu focuses on the intersection of art and architecture through the medium of large-scale temporary architectures.

Coloured Peonies by TILT – Outside the Cunard Building, the Strand

Coloured Peonies is a striking, monumental light installation created by French artistic studio TILT. Standing six metres high, these giant botanical light sculptures present a graceful, natural elegance during the day with their delicate, finely cut white petals.

As night falls, the artwork comes alive through dynamic, synchronised lighting sequences, transforming the site into a glowing canopy of ever-changing hues.

At the base of the luminaires, integrated circular benches invite visitors, families, and strangers to sit down together, pause, and share a collective moment under the light.

 TILT is a team of 10 skilled artists and technical experts dedicated to ‘re-enchanting’ spaces worldwide through tailor-made light scenographies.

Unity by Amigo & Amigo – George’s Dock Way

Rising seven metres (21ft), Unity features five human figures joyfully intertwined, their bodies merging into a singular sculptural entity. Stepping inside, you're embraced by an array of colours, shapes, and expressions, each embodying the diverse magnificence of humanity and the jubilation of unity. 

A special version of the artwork features an interactive floor, that with a playful hop or a jump triggers an ensemble of colour and sound, enriching the experience even further.

Amigo & Amigo specialises in the creation of permanent and temporary large-scale public artworks that connect with audiences through meaningful narratives and physical interactivity, ‘with the intention of igniting a transcending moment of lightness, joy and play.’

Colour Rush by Liz West – Martin Luther King Building, Royal Albert Dock

Colour Rush stands as a bold and vibrant light beacon that showcases intricate colour relationships, juxtapositions, and patterns.

The artwork radiates colourful patterns and vibrant hues in its vicinity. This spatial drawing began with a recent ink study as its foundation and colour palette. Two large system-based striped drawings were skilfully created, then cut, mixed, repositioned, and folded into eight individual stripes.

Liz West is a British artist known for her wide-ranging works, from the intimate to the monumental. Using a variety of materials and exploring the use of light, she blurs the boundaries between sculpture, architecture, design and painting to create works that are both playful and immersive. 

The Stars Come Out at Night by Stellar Creates – Anchor Courtyard, Royal Albert Dock

The Stars Come Out at Night captures the beauty and wonder of the night sky, bringing a glimmer of starlight down to earth. 

The large sculptural piece slowly rotates to reveal intricate star patterns across the surrounding landscape. As it turns, it creates a temporary universe of dancing stars that invites visitors to pause and experience the magic of a sky full of stars.

The artwork was inspired by a longstanding fascination with the stars and the cosmos, including the work of astrophysicist Carl Sagan and in particular, his famous quote: "We are all made of star stuff."

Stellar Creates was founded in 2016 by Rachel Willis and Lyndsey Stephenson. Based in Teesside, they create touring light artworks, festivals and experiences that transform everyday spaces into places of wonder, play and connection. 

Paradigm by This is Loop – Thomas Steers Way, Liverpool ONE

Paradigm explores the idea of togetherness by challenging perception, responsibility, and the quiet urgency of change in relation to the larger problems facing humanity and the planet.

The work creates a space to come together to observe, connect, and re-evaluate; inviting us to imagine a different approach. It asks us to reflect on how we see the world now, and how we might see, think, and act differently.

Based in Somerset, This is Loop has built an international reputation for delivering ambitious, large-scale experiential installations that merge art, technology and architecture. With over three decades of combined practice, the studio specialises in harnessing reflection, illusion, immersive technologies and engaging in scientific narratives to transform public spaces into captivating environments.

Dream Herd by Amigo & Amigo – Derby Square

Dream Herd is a playful and interactive installation offering a tongue-in-cheek interpretation of counting sheep. 

Each sheep’s leg is designed to be interactive, illuminating new lights and triggering unique sounds, inviting participants to engage with this whimsical dreamscape. As visitors interact, their collective actions create a mesmerising cloud of light and sound, symbolising the shared experience of dreaming together. 

Blurring the lines of reality and imagination, Dream Herd immerses visitors in the surreal feeling of being inside a dream, where creativity and curiosity take centre stage. Through its vibrant blend of light, sound, and surrealist humour, the installation transforms the simple act of counting sheep into an enchanting, otherworldly experience.

Music is by Mie Nakazawa and Frank Dasent.

POP! by Gentilhomme – Williamson Square

POP! is an interactive installation made up of five monoliths hiding playful inflatable puppets: POPO, POPUP, POPLI, POPETTE and POPOTIN.

To wake them up and release them, people must talk to them, clap or even sing, to persuade them to come alive. As the characters emerge, sound, light, and movement transform the space into a vibrant, musical, and luminous celebration.

To make all the characters come out at the same time, the audience must collaborate, coordinating their energy and presence as a group.

Gentilhomme is a multidisciplinary creative studio specialising in the creation, direction and production of interactive films, experiences and installations that capture the imagination and captivate audiences. The multi-award-winning studio has created projects around the world, earning international recognition.

River of Light runs from October 23 to November 1, from 5pm-0pm daily and is free. More details including a light trail map HERE