Shanghai, China Jul 24, 2025 – 154 artworks from 29 countries and regions showcase the Global Appeal of Light Art Storytelling
The 2025 “Shining Shanghai” (Jing’an) International Light Art Open Call has completed its concept submission phase, marking a significant step in global cultural collaboration through art and technology. This year’s theme, “Luminescent Roots: Stories of Home,” attracted 154 proposals from 145 artists and teams across 6 continents and 29 countries and regions. Notably, over half of the participating teams have received recognition from prestigious festivals like iMapp Bucharest, Fête des Lumières (Lyon), Circle of Light (Moscow), and Tokyo Minute Projection Mapping, highlighting the high quality of submissions in both artistic vision and technical skill.
Since its launch in 2023, Shining Shanghai has evolved into a leading global platform for light art storytelling. The 2023 and 2024 editions collectively drew over 5 million viewers worldwide, both online and in person. With increasing international recognition, the 2025 edition reinforces Shining Shanghai’s role as a cultural bridge, connecting the world through new media arts and celebrating artistic diversity by showcasing voices from various continents and cultures.
This year’s open call invites artists to reimagine Shanghai’s historic building, Shenyuli, as a canvas for projection-based storytelling. Artists globally explore themes of identity, tradition, and the meaning of home through light art, projected onto century-old brick architecture in Shanghai. The Fox, the Folks from Indonesia, reimagines a Balinese figure as a gentle guardian spirit, merging local myth with contemporary visual storytelling. Tunisia’s Designlab presents Oum Ezzine: Woven Into History, reviving the story of artisan Oum Ezzine El Jamalia, honoring forgotten memories and female creativity. John Tettenborn and Kourtney Lara Ross from Germany, present TAP, a digital reflection on home, filling the architecture with animated avatars and questioning if the screen has become our new dwelling. Hungary’s artist Kati Katona’s work Essentia, drawing on her bicultural background, presents a layered portrait of memory and identity. From China, CTC LAB offers a projection inspired by the five natural elements, translating regional Chinese culture and environmental philosophy into light art.
Finalists Announcement and Upcoming Timeline
The finalists are (in alphabetical order):
- AOTOO Studio (China): Tuphis
- Atmosphere Studio (Russia): Chudo Yudo
- Cheese_Trap Studio (China): At the Lattice, Stillness in the Flux
- CTC Lab (China): Cardinal Chroma
- Designlab (Tunisia): Oum Ezzine Woven Into History
- John Tettenborn & Kourtney Lara Ross (Germany): TAP
- Jonas Denzel (Germany): Echoes of Expression
- Kati Katona (Hungary): Essentia
- Los Romeras (Spain): Red Soul
- MetanoiaCreatives (Czech Republic): Crystalia
- MUMA Island (China): Luminelf
- MP Studio (Bulgaria): Peperuda: A Ritual For Rain
- NAOS Studio (Ukraine): REBIRTH
- neba studio (Macau): Homeland of the White
- NeonLab (China): Starlight Illusion
- PSI-Mediadata (Russia): KOLO
- SAM (China): Light-Cell Respiration
- co (Indonesia): Variation Pink
- Summer & Co Studio (Thailand): Lightseed of a new dawn
- The Fox, the Folks (Indonesia): Bhoma– EarthPulse
Upcoming Timeline:
- September 8th: Project Files Submission Deadline
- September 17th: Final Jury
- September 19th: Winner Announcement
- September 29th – October 8th: Offline Exhibition
Prizes
Shining Shanghai offers over 800,000 CNY (approximately $110,000 USD) in prizes, rewarding artistic excellence and innovation. The Gold Award winner will receive 250,000 CNY (~$34,000 USD), and the Silver Award winner will receive 100,000 CNY (~$13,000 USD). Three Bronze Awards will each be granted 50,000 CNY (~$6,800 USD), and 15 finalists will each receive 20,000 CNY (~$2,700 USD). In addition to the prizes, selected artists will gain international exposure through the exhibition and media coverage.
As the 2025 edition progresses, Shining Shanghai invites audiences, art enthusiasts, and cultural institutions worldwide to follow the journey of this year’s finalists.
For more updates on the finalists and upcoming exhibitions, follow the official website and Instagram (@shining_shanghai).
Media Contact
Shining Shanghai Open Call
Source :Shining Shanghai Open Call