Glow Winter Light Festival is returning to downtown Calgary for the 2022 edition. This year, you can take part in the Glow Festival of Lights alongside the Chinook Winter Blast, and YYC Hot Chocolate Fest, and celebrate all there is to love about winter in the city.
Credit: Glow Downtown Winter Light Festival
Glow, specifically, is a celebration of art through the wonder and magic of light. Stephen Ave, and a few surrounding blocks, transform into a spectacle of brightly lit artistic installations.
Alongside all the art to see are live performances, both on and off the stages, and a host of local food trucks to try. As Glow is in the heart of Calgary, there are several local restaurants around the area where you can stop in and warm up with food or hot drinks.
Here are 5 ways to make the most of Glow Downtown Winter Light Festival:
1. Downtown Art Walk
The bright creations and installations decorate a few different areas in Calgary’s downtown core. You can travel along Stephen (8th) Avenue from McLeod Trail to 5th Street and take in the lights at every corner. North of here is even more along 1st Street and Courthouse Park. This area of Calgary is home to several permanent art installations as well, sure to be enhanced by the glow of the festival.
Art installations include interactive, immersive, works of wonder by famous artists and companies like Big Art, Ingrid Ingrid, and the Urban Conga.
25 planned installations you can find are:
- Festival Street Lanterns, Dylan Toymaker
- Moon Drops, Dylan Toymaker
- Circle of Dancers, Tiffany Wollman
- Blue Lantern, Sylvie Roussel-Janssens
- Windhouse Trio, Sylvie Roussel-Janssens
- Domino Effect, Ingrid Ingrid (Creos)
- aGoGo Flow Arts, aGoGo
- Crocker Land, Rob Furr
- All Around Us, Michael Kohlweg
- Portals, Cîpayak ᒌᐸᕀ
- Glow Me a Rainbow, Maria Galura
- Googly Glow World, Michelle Ku
- Oscillation, Urban Conga (Creos)
- iitsi’poyiit – Speak Blackfoot, Hali Heavy Shield
- Circus Arts, LRB Company
- Shadowbox, Gurkaran and Vikram
- Galleria of Trees, WOW Lighting
- Fire, Andrew Tarrant
- Notorious B.A.D, True North Absurdities
- Bear-Lumination, True North Absurdities
- Expression, Daisy Blue Groff
- Tunnel, B!G ART
- Dancing Lights, Vignettes
- Ursa Major, Vignettes
- Aurora, Vignettes
2. Catch the Hourly Light Shows
At the Galleria of Trees, on 300 W Block, you can catch a colourful and bright display of light shows and performances on the hour. Throughout the evening, Glow puts on a show intended to have you stop, sip your hot chocolate, and relax under the dancing lights.
3. Enjoy Live Music Outdoors
Over the days and nights of the festival, there will be live music filling the cold winter air. You can hear from the likes of local musicians from a variety of genres. Shows take place each night of Glow from 6pm to 9pm.
4. Dinner & a Free Show
Glowfest YYC
While you snack on your gourmet street food from the many food trucks set up around downtown, you can also take in some free shows. Among the art installations and food trucks are live street performers looking to gather a crowd. You’re likely to witness these performances on 8th Avenue SW near the stages.
5. Drink all the Hot Chocolate
The Meals on Wheels YYC Hot Chocolate Fest runs until February 28th, 2022. And, you can find many of the contestants located near the Glow art installations and setups. There are 114 places in Calgary pinning their hot chocolate against one another, and you vote on which you think is the tastiest! Close to 20 of these locations are within walking distance of Glow festivities.
2022 Glow Downtown Winter Light Festival – Trip Planning
What: The Calgary Downtown Association (CDA) presents the third edition of GLOW – Downtown Winter Light Festival.
This six-day event lights up imaginations with a one-of-a-kind experience featuring interactive light displays, art, entertainment, food trucks, and activations in the heart of Calgary’s downtown core.
When: February 10-12 & 17-19, 2022 – Glow 2022 Program Schedule
Where: Stephen Avenue, Downtown Calgary
2022 Glow Downtown Winter Light Festival
How Much: free
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