2026 REVEALING THE LIGHT ESSEN

Temporary installation for the Marktkirche Essen, Germany

 

Temporary video installation from 26.09 – 17.10.2026 with soundscape.

Part of the exhibition series ‘Lonely, Together, The Courage to exist’ commissioned by the Evangelical Church of North Rhine-Westphalia, curated by Holger Hagedorn. (Einsam, gemeinsam. Mut zum sein).

 

Concept and direction: Diana Ramaekers

Blackmagic camera and editing: RGB Media, Weit Hoogeveen

3D Unreal Engine: Jos Gelissen, Zuyd University of Applied Sciences

Soundscape: Jürgen Gaida

 

‘Revealing the Light’ emerges from my ongoing artistic research into darkness and the disappearing night sky. As artificial light increasingly fills our cities, the stars become less visible and our connection to the rhythms of nature grows more distant. The work asks a simple yet urgent question: what do we lose when darkness vanishes?

Visitors enter a luminous orange environment that echoes the glow of light pollution. Hidden within this brightness lies a starry sky, invisible at first sight. Within the projected imagery, dark silhouettes move through the light, their shadows gradually unveiling the brilliance of the real night sky concealed beneath the orange haze. As more stars emerge, the work suggests that the rediscovery of the night is a collective act.

A specially composed soundscape accompanies the installation, translating the mystery of darkness and light into an immersive sonic landscape. Together, image and sound invite visitors to experience darkness not as an absence, but as a space of attention, wonder and connection, and to imagine a future in which the stars might once again become part of our shared night.