Millennium Square Zone

1. In Dual Light

Artist: Nele Fack & Niels Blondeel (Belgium)

Leeds Civic Hall, Millennium Square, LS1 1UR
W3W: salon.woes.crisp
OUTDOOR | BUSY | SOUND

Repeats throughout the evening

   
Light, geometry and sound transform the Civic Hall. Inspired by the mathematical idea of duality, this projection piece explores how two apparently different things can be alternative expressions of the same underlying form. Shapes divide, overlap and reconnect across the building, revealing unexpected patterns and relationships. Bold, rhythmic and expansive, this large-scale projection invites us to see difference in a new way and discover the hidden structures that connect the world around us.

In partnership with City of Maths.

2. Behold

Artist: Akeelah Bertram (UK)

Carriageworks Theatre, Millennium Square, LS2 3AD  
W3W: humans.behave.season
IMMERSIVE | VOCAL | SOUNDSCAPE 
  
Step into a luminous world shaped by the voices and imaginations of 300 children from six Leeds schools. Each child contributed a form and a phrase in the language that feels most like home. Within the Carriageworks Theatre, their words and drawings gather into a shifting field of light, carried by the children’s own voices through fog and surround sound. Meditative, ethereal and quietly uplifting, Behold celebrates the many languages of Leeds and the powerful sense of connection created when individual voices come together.  

3. Bird Song (Owls)

Artist: Lou Chapelle (UK/France)

Leeds City Museum, Millennium Square, LS2 8BH 
W3W: festivity.hills.cheek
INDOOR | TRANQUIL | BUSY 

Come face to face with three magnificent European eagle owls, brought to life as glowing holograms within sculptural birdhouses. Inspired by the owl on Leeds’ historic city crest, these watchful guardians appear almost close enough to touch. Stand beside them, capture a photograph and listen as a meditative soundscape transforms the space into their imagined habitat. Bird Song (Owls) celebrates one of the city’s most recognisable symbols while offering a gentle reminder that these extraordinary creatures depend on healthy, protected environments in which to survive and thrive

In Partnership with Vision Zero. 

4. Echoes

Artist: Leeds Beckett University Performing Arts third year students (UK)  

Rose Bowl Car Park, Portland Cresent, LS2 3AW  
W3W: fault.bring.desire
OUTDOOR | CARPARK | SPECTACULAR  

What might Leeds say if we stopped to listen? Echoes draws on the memories held in the city’s streets and buildings, from footsteps and celebrations to moments of protest, love and loss. The city is alive with voices – some loud, some whispered and many go unheard. Pause, look and listen to the stories as the city speaks.  
  
In partnership with Leeds Beckett University.
    

5. Leeds Bridge 1880/2026 (after Grimshaw)

Artist: Emily Allchurch (UK)

The Light, The Headrow, LS1 8TL
W3W: envy.ended.ships
HISTORICAL | QUIET | LED 

See Leeds Bridge shift between past and present in Emily Allchurch’s contemporary response to a painting by Atkinson Grimshaw. His atmospheric 1880 view of the Victorian cast iron crossing, held by Leeds Art Gallery, slowly dissolves into a digital photographic collage of the same scene today. Displayed as an illuminated artwork beside The Light, the changing image reveals how the city has evolved while tracing details that have endured. Commissioned for Leeds 400, the work connects two moments in the life of this historic River Aire crossing. 

In partnership with The Light

6. Foster 4 Leeds Neons

Artist: Children in Care  

Cookridge Street, LS1 8EQ  
W3W: ample.bounty.wisely
OUTDOOR | FAMILY | LED 

Look up to discover children’s drawings glowing above Cookridge Street. Each neon artwork began as an image created by a child in care, capturing something they enjoy doing with their foster carer. Transformed into light, these personal moments become a bright and joyful celebration of care, creativity and time spent together. Foster4Leeds Neons brings young people’s ideas into the heart of the city, inviting visitors to notice the stories held within each playful line and illuminated shape. 

In partnership with Foster4Leeds.
 

7. Leodis: 400 Years of Leeds in the Leeds Libraries Collections 

Artist: Leeds Libraries

Leeds City Library, Calverley Street, Leeds, LS1 3AB 
W3W: cross.narrow.ruler | Accessible entrance: W3W: cross.narrow.ruler
IMMERSIVE | HERITAGE | REMINISCENCE 

Step into 400 years of Leeds history through the remarkable collections of Leeds Libraries. Journey from 17th-century manuscripts and rare maps to photographs, films, memoirs, newspapers, football fanzines and, of course, books. Discover some of the city’s richest treasures and explore how its stories have been collected, protected and shared across generations. A special immersive VR workshop brings these fascinating archives to life, inviting you to encounter Leeds’ past in new and unexpected ways and consider how today’s experiences might become tomorrow’s history. 

In partnership with Leeds Libraries.