WHEN NIGHT FALLS OVER SMÖGEN, THE LIGHT COMES ALIVE

4–13 SEP 2026 SMÖGEN, SWEDEN

Island of Light is an international light art festival where the cliffs, sea, boathouses, and horizon of Smögen become the stage for site-specific works by artists from around the world.

This is not a festival placed in nature.
It is a festival created with it.

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PLAN YOUR VISIT

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MIGUEL CHEVALIER

POST- NATURAL: LIVING PLANKTON

A monumental digital ecosystem projected directly onto Smögen’s pink granite. Inspired by plankton – the ocean’s blue lung – a world emerges at the intersection
of science, myth, nature, and technology.

Music: Claude Micheli

HOW DO YOU WANT TO EXPERIENCE THE LIGHT?

NIGHT LIGHT WALK

Experience the light art as darkness reveals the landscape.

DAY LIGHT WALK

Explore the place, the materials, and the stories behind the works in daylight.

FROM THE SEA

Discover the festival from the water – where the cliffs, artworks, and horizon are seen from a whole new perspective.

OPEN SKY CINEMA / SPECIAL EVENTS

Evenings, encounters, and experiences under the open sky.

GUIDED TOURS

Guided tours and meetings that deepen the experience of the artists, the place and the works.

THIS YEAR’S ARTISTS

EMMA RÖNNHOLMEN

FINLAND

Emma Rönnholm is a visual artist, working predominately with sculpture, installation, kinetic and light art. She likes to set her works in motion using simple motorised mechanisms, tension, optical illusions or light. The pieces are often made of recycled everyday materials. Humour, DIY and a certain meditative rhythm define her artistic oeuvre. Rönnholm obtained her MA in the Finnish Academy of Fine Arts in 2011.

ROBERT SOCHACKI

POLAND

Working within the light art frame Sochacki comments and interprets topic from everydaylife. He looks into social and political perspectives and tries to uncover some relationships between the artwork and the space where it is presented. By creating artistic codes and contextualize them in a site specific setting he invites the viewers to re-discover and re-define their everyday experience. His artistic resaerche is focused on deconstruction the division between the artwork and the viewer. Going beyond the tradicional pedagogy of a master/student, he is lecturer (PhD) at art academies.

MIGUEL CHEVALIER

FRANCE

French digital and virtual artist. Since 1978, Miguel Chevalier has used computers as a means of expression in the field of the visual arts. He has established himself internationally as one of the pioneers of virtual and digital art.

THOSE GUYS LIGHTING

LATVIA

We are a collective of engineers, lighting designers, and programmers based in Riga, Latvia. Since our founding in 2018, we’ve evolved from a small studio into a recognized name in the European light-art scene. Our projects have been featured at major events across Europe and beyond. Driven by passion and precision, we are committed to delivering bold, uncompromising light-based experiences.

ANTON & CRAIG

WALES

Frequent collaborators Craig Morrison and Ant Dickinson are Wales-based creative practitioners working across interdisciplinary fields. Morrison’s practice moves fluidly between fashion, production, costume design, curation, and creative direction, while Dickinson’s work is grounded in music, media design, and projection. For this installation, they are joined by Norwegian dancer Ann-Kathrin Granhus, embodying the central role of the Shaman.

ANDREW SCOTT

SWEDEN

Andrew Scott has been a teacher in various aspects of Media Production since the turn of the millennium. Since 2010 he has run the Audiovisual Production program at Höskolan Dalarna. The education has also developed Scott's own work and for the third time he is exhibiting a work at Island of Light.

ARIC LANGENDOEN

NETHERLANDS

Eric Langendoen is a designer, performer and visual artist. His work varies from site specific theatre to interactive installations. The works take many forms, but they are always situated in the triangle between music, theatre and visual arts. He tries to engage the audience in a way that they can interact with or become part of the work.

ANNI LAUKKA

FINLAND

Anni Laukka (b. 1982, Kokkola, Finland) is a contemporary artist working across sculpture, installation, and light-based practices. Her work explores how material, memory, and lived experience intersect, transforming found and sourced materials into installations and sculptures that carry both physical and documentary presence.

ILLUMINOS

Illuminos are brothers Matt and Rob Vale, who for over 10 years have been creating visually inventive, memorable projection artworks and experiences. Our works range from very large scale illumination to small scale imagery, but always working to create something unique and specific to location and viewer.

DORINA THEODORA & NIKOLAUS ALEXIOU

GREECE

Theodora (Dorina) Salti is a doctoral candidate at the Faculty of Art and Design, University of Lapland, and a drama teacher researching the educational potential of immersive experiences in interactive audiovisual installations and performances.

PAS

SWEDEN

Under the direction of EMMA- KARA NILSSON – lighting designer and lighting artist with a focus on the expression of the place/room. With nature as a source of inspiration, my artistic works take shape.

ALEKSANDRA STRATIMIROVIC

SWEDEN

Aleksandra Stratimirovic is a light artist whose practice explores the spatial, emotional, and social dimensions of light in public space. She works across installation, site-specific intervention, and public art, creating works that engage architecture, perception, and collective experience. Aleksandra has been part of the creative team behind Island of Light since its start.

Se alla konstnärer

SMÖGEN IS THE STAGE. THE SEA IS THE SPACE. THE CLIFFS ARE THE CANVAS.

Island of Light emerges where art meets place. The pink granite cliffs, boathouses, quays, the sea, and the open sky are not just a backdrop – they are part of the works. Here, light gains scale, direction, echo, and resistance.

THE CLIFFS

Natural stone surfaces become monumental canvases and spaces.

THE OCEAN

The water reflects, distorts, and extends the light.

THE DARKNESS

As daylight fades, the island transforms.

FIND THE LIGHT

Follow the route through Smögen and discover how each work responds to a specific part of the island. Walk slowly, return after nightfall, or experience selected works from the water.

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THE LIGHT REVEALS WHAT WE MUST TAKE CARE OF.

Island of Lights is a tribute to the place – but also a reminder of its fragility. Through art, light, and local collaborations, it turns attention to the sea, the materials, and the responsibility of creating within nature.

COME FOR THE LIGHT. STAY FOR SMÖGEN.

Make an evening of your visit. Walk along the quays, eat by the sea, follow the light out to the cliffs, and let the island transform as darkness falls.

WHEN IS THE FESTIVAL?

In 2026, the festival runs from 4–13 September.

ARE THERE HOTELS NEARBY?

A range of accommodation options are available nearby to suit all needs, including Smögens Gästgiveri, Sea Lodge, and Wallentinska Huset, as well as many more hotels, Airbnbs, and hostels.

HOW DO YOU GET THERE?

Travelling here without a car? The nearest train station is Gothenburg Central Station. From there, take Västtrafik bus 860 from the Nils Ericson Terminal straight to Smögen bus station.

WHAT CAN YOU DO IN SMÖGEN?

Beyond Island of Lights, Smögen offers activities and attractions for everyone. Take a boat trip to Hållö or go on a seal safari. Experience the stunning landscape along the Kleven hiking trail, visit the Smögen pilot lookout, or explore the Sandön nature reserve. Or simply enjoy Smögen’s wide range of restaurants and
its local brewery.

WANT TO STAY UPDATED?

Stay updated on our social media! We share ongoing updates before, during, and
after the festival mainly via our Instagram, linked below.

CAN YOU BRING A STROLLER?

Yes. Most of Smögen is accessible with a stroller. As some artworks involve exploring the cliffs, it’s possible to leave your stroller nearby when needed.

CREATED BY ARTISTS, LOCAL FORCES, AND THE ISLAND ITSELF.

Island of Light is made possible by artists, partners, volunteers, local businesses, and everyone who wants to see Smögen shine far beyond the summer season. Island of Light is organized by the non-profit association Smögen Art-light festival, under the artistic direction of its founder, Dulce Sales Ahlberg.

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