Gaze at the moon closer than ever before as the Museum of the Moon features at this year’s late-night arts festival, Illuminate, across Oldham town centre.
Created by artist Luke Jerram, this fascinating installation measures seven metres in diameter and features 120dpi detailed NASA imagery of the lunar surface, with each centimetre of the internally lit sculpture representing 5km of the moon’s surface – it’s one not to be missed.
The popular sculpture showcases at Gallery Oldham on Friday 21 February (6-9pm), joining a number of other illuminative-themed performances, attractions and workshops across the town centre to create the perfect family outing.
A carnival procession of light kicks off the fourth Illuminate festival from 6pm as hundreds of handmade lanterns, created by local residents and community groups, make their way up from Gallery Oldham to the Old Town Hall.
From there, more than 20 fringe events will take place throughout the evening across several of the town centre’s hotspots.
Immerse yourself into the life of well-known titular character ‘Pac-Man’ as part of the life-sized interactive Actual Reality Arcade located at The Egyptian Room. This interactive zone is inspired by a number of classic arcade games such as the ‘80s maze chase and the tile-matching puzzle, Tetris.
Be sure to witness a spectacular 3D projection, specially created by acclaimed artists Illuminos, over at the Old Town Hall as it tells the story of a young explorer’s journey through the ocean as they encounter bioluminescent jellyfish and more along the way.
Interact with multi-coloured LED lights and one-way mirrors as the Hypercube takes you into another dimension at Oldham Parish Church. See flames and water dance from majestic contraptions in the church gardens too, before taking a guided candlelight tour of the church crypt, burial home of the Oldham Giant. If you haven’t booked your place on the tour already call 0161 770 3070.
At Oldham Library, take part in a number of exciting arts and crafts activities with Oldham Play Action Group and enjoy performances from Oldham Coliseum’s Rep company and the Dancing Diyas from Indian Association Oldham too.
Over at Parliament Square, witness the heart of the town centre come alive through a host of illuminative performances from IFE, Ghost Caribou, Arctic Fox and the celestial goddess Aurora, plus loads more.
Other attractions taking place at Gallery Oldham include an illuminating accessory workshop with Hack Oldham, an emotionally charged dance performance from Company Chameleon, late-night exhibitions and live music from local bands in Naked Bean café.
Leader of Oldham Council, Councillor Sean Fieldling, said: “Illuminate has proven to be an extremely popular event with residents over the last few years and this year’s event makes no exception with another evening of free high-quality entertainment lined-up for visitors of all ages to enjoy.
“Illuminate builds on our ambition to create a successful programme of activities that encourages both our residents and visitors from across the city region to come into Oldham for and it also demonstrates our commitment to providing a vibrant night-time economy.
“I sure hope you can make this event and I look forward to seeing you all there.”
For more information on this year’s Illuminate Festival, please visit www.oldham.gov.uk/Illuminate.
