Archbishop of Sydney, Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP, is inviting all Sydneysiders and visitors to enjoy an extended Lights of Christmas display at St Mary’s Cathedral during December.
Now in its seventh year, the stunning animated light and sound display on the cathedral façade promises to capture the imaginations of children and adults alike with a blend of storytelling and traditional and digital artwork.
Lights of Christmas will be launched on Wednesday, December 6 in the cathedral forecourt.
It will begin each night at 7.30pm with a choir performance, followed by the light and sound show commencing at 8.30pm and continuing until midnight. The final show will be on December 25.
“Many young people from around Australia will be here for the start of the Australian Catholic Youth Festival the following day and I hope they will join the thousands of people from all over
Sydney and from all communities who have made Lights of Christmas a wonderful Sydney tradition,” said Archbishop Fisher.
Lights of Christmas creator Anthony Bastic of AGB Events said that the event has grown bigger each year since the first one in 2010.
“Last year marked our biggest year to date, with more than one million people coming to St Mary’s Cathedral to watch the show.”
There are three segments to the show. The first will be a visual animation of decorative patterns inspired by St Mary’s stained glass windows and terrazzo mosaics.
The second segment, titled ‘The Gift of Time’, is an animated story on the theme of being attentive to those around us at Christmas time.
The characters were created by hand using watercolour and gouache in traditional styles, before being brought to life through digital animation. Bridging new technologies with traditional artistry is a hallmark of the AGB style.
The final segment will showcase projections of a series of Madonna and Child artworks, featuring three Old Masters’ paintings and three other masterpieces chosen among Archbishop Fisher’s favourites.