A review from 5D Music & Theatre writer Maria Robertson.
This is the 11th year of Spectra: Scotland’s festival of light in Aberdeen. Organised by Live Event Management and Aberdeen City Council, Spectra runs from the 6th to the 9th of February 2025. Open from 5:30 until 10pm every evening across Aberdeen city centre it is totally free for all to enjoy. This year the theme is “Journey” which ties in with one of the next exciting events in our city, of the tall ships coming to visit.
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Installations are in Union Terrace Gardens, outside His Majesty’s Theatre, around Aberdeen Art Gallery, in the graveyard of St Nicholas Kirk and then there’s one in Marishal Square and several on Broad Street. They are all nice and central, easily walkable even if you take small kids! Children will especially enjoy the storytelling that will be happening in the Cowdray Hall as well as the fun lights, and the Neon Colouring Wall where they can even join in creating art.
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The light effects are very effective and there really is something for everyone; whether you want to walk down some mirrored lights, or use a QR code to bring different plaques to life, or watch the colours of a huge slinky glow and revolve. My favourite piece is the Mycelium Network in the graveyard, with fibre optics looking like the roots of trees with mushrooms lit up and growing in between. There’s an eerie noise playing as you walk past and it’s just fascinating to watch the colours pulsate through the illuminated roots.
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I was also very touched with The Matter of the Heart which is some green glowing cubes. When you get up close you realise that each one has a name and description of the person whose heartbeat is depicted by the beating light in the cube. There are 65 of these glowing cubes, representing real local people and their real-time heartbeats. It is a really moving piece.
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Ursula Lassos the Moon over by Provost Skene’s House is a giant glowing moon orbiting within a lasso attached to a wooden boat. Quite simple in comparison to some of the sights around the city but somehow very captivating at the same time.
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A few people have commented but they do not like the crowds of Spectra, as it gets bigger and better every year. However several of the pieces this year are actually better seen from a distance, such as the Sky Castle, which is quite weird when you get inside it but looks absolutely fantastic from various angles further away.
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St Nicholas Kirk’s steeple acts as a backdrop for Voyage, which is an amazing light show which is very Aberdonian visually. Although the overall effect made me think of some of the fantastic sights we saw in Disney World, although there were definitely no hidden Mickeys or any other children’s characters! Again this can be enjoyed from quite a distance if you prefer not to engage with the crowds and any queues.
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Some of the local businesses have also jumped on the Spectra bandwagon. Drummonds bar on Belmont Street is all lit up appropriately. Just along the road is Dough & Co which has a Spectra themed strawberry doughnut with popping candy specifically for the event. Over in Marischal Square, Mackies have created a Parma Violet ice cream which tastes just like the well-known sweets, with the added excitement of the fact that it changes colour under a UV lamp. Yes, they do have one in the café that you can play with!
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Some of the art installations are also interactive, whether it’s walking through the bouncy castle arches of the Sky Castle, drawing on the Neon Colouring Wall, or using the QR codes to bring the Northern Lights Programme art pieces to life. This was created by multiple artists and commissioned and produced by Look Again Aberdeen.
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Spectra really has something for everyone, it is the much needed smile in the darkness of winter with its bright lights and fascinating exhibits. Our city is lucky to get the chance to see some of these talented artists’ creations on our doorstep, just make sure you wrap up warm – and take your camera!
Further information: http://www.spectrafestival.com/
Maria Robertson is the Chief Music & Theatre Writer for the 5D Pop Culture Website and provides reviews & coverage of local Aberdeen music & theatre gigs. She’s an experienced writer for numerous sources and is a self-confessed live gig addict ever since seeing The Counting Crows at the Barrowlands in 1994.
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