Lumiere, the UK’s light art biennial, returns to County Durham this November and will run from Thursday 13 to Saturday 15 November, between 17:00 and 22:00 each evening.
This year’s Spotlight on County Durham will be in Shildon. As the home of Locomotion, Shildon is at the centre of the celebrations for this year’s 200th anniversary of the first railway journey. Lumiere will highlight the anniversary with three spectacular artworks in the town. No tickets are required to visit Shildon.
Artworks include Alight by artists NOVAK, a projection piece with sound, which will run from 17:00–22:00 each night, with some testing earlier in the week. We will endeavour to keep noise within acceptable levels throughout.
Also in Shildon, inside the museum, will be Iron Horse Junction by artist Hannah Fox who has worked with Year 9 Durham Academy students, to make an immersive experience that evokes the past experiences of those who lived alongside, worked and travelled the rail lines. Illuminating the nearby pathway is Glimmer, a cloud of beautiful lanterns made by County Durham’s local residents and young people.
A free shuttle bus will be provided between Shildon Centre and Locomotion to transport audience members to and from the event from Thursday 13 to Saturday 15 November at the following locations:
- Stop 1: King William Bus Stop (Cnr Albert Street & Welsey Cres, Shildon DL4 2DN)
- Stop 2: Locomotion museum, Shildon (Dale Road Industrial Estate, Shildon DL4 2RE)
Timetable: 17:00 – 21.45, pick up every 15 minutes:
- First pick up from King William Bus stop: 17:00 / Last pick up: 21:15
- Last pick up from Locomotion Museum: 21:00
The shuttle bus is provided by Shildon Community Bus and has wheelchair access. A member of the Lumiere team will be at the Shildon bus stop to help with any questions or concerns.
The Durham City programme runs from 17:00-22:00 each evening. Visitors will need pre-booked free tickets (booking fee applies) if they wish to access the controlled zone and there are four ticket slots per night. Once in the controlled zone visitors will be able to stay as long as they like. More than half the installations are located outside the controlled zone and visitors will not need a ticket to visit these. Tickets are available to book now on Lumiere-festival.com.
If you have any questions, please call the dedicated hotline on 03000 264 440 or email lumiere[@]durham[.]gov[.]uk
Shildon & District's local community newspaper.






