Open Call: Light Art Installation for Leuven Town Hall
Deadline: 1 September 2026
The City of Leuven, LOV2030 and Shift are seeking an artist or artists’ collective to create a temporary light artwork on the scaffolding hoarding of Leuven’s historic town hall.
From the summer of 2026, the Gothic portico of the town hall will be restored and screened off with a canvas depicting the façade. During Wintertijd, this hoarding will be given a new artistic interpretation through a light art installation that brings warmth, imagination and wonder to the heart of the city. A special feature of this commission is the participatory process: young people from Shift will be actively involved in the development and implementation of the project.
In brief
- Commission: a one-off, temporary light art installation, projected onto the scaffolding hoarding at Leuven Town Hall
- Display period: Wintertijd, from 8 December 2026 to 10 January 2027
- Budget: €50,000, including VAT and production costs
- Participation: process involving young people (aged 12–25) from Shift, a digital youth centre at the Schouwburg in Leuven
- Proposal deadline: 1 September 2026
This open call is the result of a collaboration between:
- City of Leuven: Leuven’s 15th-century Gothic town hall has been closed since autumn 2025 for a thorough restoration. In 2029, it will reopen as the Town Hall – European House for Democracy: a shared meeting place for the people of Leuven and visitors, and one of the highlights of Leuven’s designation as European Capital of Culture 2030.
- LOV2030 – Leuven & Beyond: the initiative through which Leuven and the thirty municipalities of East Brabant were designated European Capital of Culture 2030 in 2025. Under the ‘HumanNature’ concept, LOV2030 uses culture to build a warmer, more connected region, centred on the pillars of Human, Nature and Innovation.
- Shift: a digital and creative youth centre in Leuven’s Schouwburg theatre, an initiative by Link in de Kabel in collaboration with 30CC. Young people aged between 12 and 25 can experiment there free of charge with digital media and technology — from 3D printing to VR and AI — with a strong focus on social inclusion and accessible introduction to art and culture.