November 1st to 10th, 2024
Troy Glow Light Festival Illuminating Troy, NY
Free 10-Day Festival of World Class Art
Produced by the Arts Center of the Capital Region, Troy Glow 2024 was a dazzling 10-day festival that lit up downtown Troy in November 2024. Visitors experienced 10 light art installations on a 15 minute walk through Troy’s historic streets. Organized around the end of Daylight Savings Time, Troy Glow cheerfully welcomed winter’s darkness and allowed visitors to enjoy beautiful art and all Troy has to offer!
2 More Public Events!
Friday, Nov. 8th6-11pm
Neon Nights Bar Crawl
Check in at Mean Max, 251 River St.
A dozen Troy bars will be serving up specialty Glow-themed cocktails! Pick up a passport at Mean Max. Visit 4+ participating bars and get your passport stamped. Return your stamped passport by 11pm to Helderberg Meadworks (45 3rd St.) to enter a raffle for awesome Troy prizes.
Free tour of Glow installations at 6pm. Meet at the Arts Center (265 River St.)
Sponsored by United Group, Mean Max Brew Works, and Helderberg Meadery.
Saturday, Nov. 9th4-8pm
Troyful Glow Downtown Stroll
Check in at Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, 30 2nd St.
Local businesses will be activated with live music and art! Presented by the Downtown Troy BID.
Free tours of Glow installations every hour on the hour from 5-8pm. Meet at 30 Second St.
Free Tours Each Night
Guided tours were offered each night of the festival so visitors could learn more about the installations and Troy’s history.
2024 Artists
Alissa Eberle, Altered Glow
Troy Wine Co., 2nd and Broadway
Altered Glow explores the threads between past, present and possible futures. A trio of handmade neon artworks each offer a lens on our collective and personal histories and seek to illuminate the complexity of our evolving relationship with time, memory and light.
Alissa Eberle (all pronouns) is a visual artist and full time neon glassbender, living and working in Philadelphia PA. Originally from Lowell Massachusetts, Alissa studied at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts Tufts University graduating with a BFA in Studio Art.
Learn More About Alissa
Aurora Robson, Eos
Troy Saving Bank Music Hall Box Office, 30 2nd Street
Eos is a celebration of curved forms created from industrial plastic rescued from the wastestream. Eos is the Greek goddess of the dawn who each morning announced the arrival of her brother, the sun god Helios. A wake up call, the installation calls attention to the situation we have created due to the overuse of plastic.
Aurora Robson’s (she/her) practice focuses on plastic debris as a sculpture medium, using methods like welding and 3D printing. Robson was born in Canada, grew up in Hawaii, then lived in NYC for 21 years. She has received numerous awards and is the founding artist of Project Vortex. She lives and works in the Hudson Valley.
Learn More About Aurora
Carol Salmanson, Light Spills
Pioneer Bank, 21 2nd Street
Light Spills are carnival-like geometric compositions created from layers of reflective vinyl, the same kind used to make road signs. Composed of many layers of color and light, they create surprising depth at the same time as their light fills the windows and splashes onto the street. Their innovation mirrors that of Troy: contemporary technology transforming a historic space.
Carol Salmanson (she/her) works with light and reflective materials to create installations, sculptures, and wall pieces. Her work forms complex layered geometric compositions that radiate color into their surroundings. Salmanson’s installations and sculptures have been seen in Russia, New York, and New Jersey. In addition to her extensive exhibition history, she has curated shows as well.
Learn More about Carol
Jason Peters, Beacon
4th and Fulton Streets
Through complex light installations created from simple 5 gallon buckets, the artist creates situations where nothing is as it seems. Notions of reality are exposed as mere assumptions that may or may not bear relationships to how the world works. The artist invites viewers to enter a space where the mind is allowed free rein and to escape reality through beautiful, dancing light.
Jason Peters (he/him) lives and works in Brooklyn and attended the Maryland Institute, College of Art, Baltimore. He utilizes mass-produced found objects within his practice to construct large-scale installations that reference their surroundings. He attempts to evoke emotional reactions to these objects, often utilizing light to manipulate perception.
Learn More about Jason
Layla Klinger, Troy 1877
Trojan Horse Antiques, 297 River Street
The artist presents an electroluminescent lace installation inspired by a historical map of Troy published in 1877 where different sections of the map disappear and reappear in alternating patterns. Troy 1877 remakes a memory of space into a different kind of divider, one of physical space, while offering new and changing reconfigurations.
Layla Klinger (all pronouns) is an interdisciplinary artist and educator working across sculpture, lacemaking, audiovisual installation and queer performance. They have exhibited work in New York, New Jersey, and Houson and have created site-specific installations nationally and abroad. They live in Brooklyn and teach at Parsons School of Design.
Learn More about Layla
Level Studio Architecture, Evolving Luminescence
Donna’s, Franklin Alley and Broadway
Evolving Luminescence acts as an extension of the historic building’s facade. It reaches into Franklin Alley and enchants onlookers with its interplay of colored lights on cantilevered scrims. The artwork takes advantage of this corner transition and illuminates a look towards Troy’s future.
Level Studio Architecture, a full service architectural design firm, and Vespr Studio, a highly creative lighting design studio have partnered for the first time together on Evolving Luminescence. With a shared vision of creating spaces that resonate with simplicity, materiality and site-specific sensitivity, the team is excited to work together on this installation.
Learn More about Level Studio
Natan Diacon-Furtado, Light Work, Troy
Lightspec, 48 4th Street
This installation encourages visitors to see themselves reflected in the history and culture of Troy and become active collaborators in the changing city. A floating sculpture with a mirrored surface shifts throughout the day. Projections onto the sculpture change. Visitors’ reflections merge and interact with the form, becoming part of the work.
Natan Diacon-Furtado (all pronouns) is a Brazilian and American collaborative artist and designer. Trained as a cultural anthropologist, public interest designer and architect, their public, iterative and interactive projects collaboratively imbue basic forms, patterns and rhythms with shared meaning: crafting spaces and projects that act as community architectures and living archives.
Learn More about Natan
Nate Mohler, Entanglement
Monument Square, Broadway and 2nd Street
Mohler’s ice sculpture explores the interplay between humanity and nature, the impermanence of time, and the pressing urgency of climate change. The combination of melting ice and animated light serves as a visual metaphor for how connected humans are to nature and how our actions have far-reaching impacts on the environment.
Nate Mohler (he/him) integrates physical installations with technology to build conceptual and avant-garde experiences. A UCLA graduate, Mohler is intrigued with the fusion of conceptual art and technology to support connectivity and social activism. His work focuses on eliciting action and question through various digital mediums.
Learn More about Nate
Sabrina Barrios, Blue Lotus
River Street Stairwell, 273 River Street
The artist’s practice explores “techno-ancestry,” inhabiting the present with awareness of our roots while envisioning a future where technology strengthens, rather than severs, our connection to the past. Blue Lotus depicts a portal that invites viewers into a technological sphere pulsating with echoes of ancestral knowledge.
Sabrina Barrios (she/her) is an interdisciplinary artist whose work delves into the possibilities of the metaverse, and explores the tension amongst material, digital and spiritual worlds. She has exhibited and produced site-specific installations across the globe.
Learn More about SabrinaEnjoy Troy… On Us!
Each month until November we will be giving away a Troy Night Out worth $100! Sign up for Troy Glow updates to enter a chance to win!
To enter, sign up for Troy Glow email updates. Follow Troy Public Art on Instagram, Facebook and TikTok to receive up to three additional entries. Winners will receive gift certificates from Troy establishments worth $100. We will announce winners on the 10th of each month from now until November.
The provider of this sweepstakes is the Arts Center of the Capital Region. Sweepstakes ends at midnight on November 9, 2024. Limit 4 total entries per person (upon email sign up, Troy Public Art Instagram follow, Facebook follow, TikTok follow). One winner will be randomly selected on the 10th of the month in August, September, October, and November 2024. Winner may not resell prize. Read the Full Rules
FAQs
What is Troy Glow 2024?
Troy Glow 2024 was a light art festival that took place November 1st – 10th, 2024 in Troy, New York. 10 light art installations were on view in 5 downtown blocks. Projects could be viewed anytime during these dates.
Is Troy Glow 2024 Free?
Yes! Troy Glow 2024 installations and events were free and open to the public.
What Else is There to do in Troy?
Downtown Troy is home to many small businesses and is known for its artisan shops and vibrant restaurant and bar scene. Visit the Downtown Troy BID for information on Troy businesses.
Who Organized Troy Glow 2024?
Troy Glow was organized by the Arts Center of the Capital Region’s Public Art Program whose offices are in downtown Troy. Judie Gilmore was the festival’s director.
Who are the Troy Glow 2024 Curators?
Troy Glow 2024 curators are Judie Gilmore and Adam Frelin.
Relive Troy Glow 2022
These projects were commissioned for the inaugural presentation of Troy Glow in 2022.
Jerry Huang, Tech Valley Center of Gravity collaboration
Now at a permanent location - TVCOG, 30 3rd St.
Julian Goldman + Avi Nagel, Wind Wheels Project
Troy Glow is a project of the Arts Center of the Capital Region in partnership with the City of Troy and the Downtown Troy BID. It is made is made possible with support from the American Rescue Plan Act and the City of Troy, The Opalka Family, Troy Savings Bank Charitable Foundation, United Group, WestShore Design Engineers, The Rosenblum Companies, Lightspec, Mannix Marketing, Mean Max Brew Works, McDonald Real Estate, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, The Ruck, Clark House Hospitality, and many individual friends of the project.
Special thanks to Adam Frelin, Alexis Connor, Astri Bryce, Avner Ben Natan, Belinda Colon, Benj Gleeksman, Bill Allen, Cameron Parry, Carlos Thompson, Corey Aldrich, Corey Dixon, David Bryce, Donald LaRosa, Duncan Crary, Elizabeth Reiss, Emma Macguffie, Greg Back, Gwen Krause, Howie Silverstein, JaDeana Cognetta, James Kehoe, Jamel Mosely, Jamey Colaruotolo, Jamie Clechenko, Jamie Dougherty, Jensen Whitehouse, Jon Elbaum, Joseph Nicosia, Josh Gyamfi, Judie Gilmore, Mark Mannix, Mary Rozell, Matt Crane, Molly Purcell, Nicolas Nitti, Nicole Peterson, Olivia Clemente, Patrick Harris, Philip Walsh, Piper Gregory, Sara Mannix, Shannon McNeal, Stephen Lomnes, Steve Alvarez, Steve Danzig, Steve Ridler, Sugi Pickard, Taylor Michum, Tessa Lyn, Tim Nerney, Tyler Gandolfo, Vic Christopher, Warren Shaw, and Yael Erel.
® I LOVE NEW YORK is a registered trademark and service mark of the New York State Department of Economic Development; used with permission.
Local Business Partners
Lightspec
Lightspec is a lighting manufacturer’s representative agency, with over 65 employees in the New York, Ohio, and Kentucky markets. With a passion for illuminating spaces and enriching lives, they are dedicated to delivering top-notch lighting solutions that redefine illumination. From residential retreats to commercial marvels, their expert team crafts lighting experiences that seamlessly blend functionality and aesthetics.
McDonald Real Estate Co.
24 2nd St, Troy, NY
Troy’s downtown commercial and residential real estate is one of our city’s most attractive selling points. It’s why creatives flock here in the first place, making Troy Glow possible. Colin McDonald is a champion of downtown real estate, and we are proud to partner with McDonald Real Estate to make Troy Glow a reality.
Vicina: Modern Urban Flats
100 Congress St, Troy, NY
Vicina is hosting a Window Works by Collar Works project, “Prove your humanity” by notpaulsimon. Drawing upon gestures borne of the digital age, “Prove your humanity” rekindles the physical, igniting the human desire for longing, desire, and connection. The wandering lines of the sculptures weave and swipe through space unmediated: wires exposed and tubes bundled. Foregoing digital fabrication techniques in favor of direct material manipulation, the work recovers the sense of humanity that is lost in digital mediation. In a world where our movement is tracked, monitored, and commodified, "Prove your humanity" reclaims the gestures that make us human.
lightexture
2 3rd St, Troy, NY
Come in during the festival and enjoy a 15% off in-store purchases. Also, see a light installation that spatially explores light-art developed for Operatic Workshop at EMPAC. The installation spatially explores light art developed for "The Other Side of Silence" Operatic Workshop presented by EMPAC Research and Opera Saratoga Oct 16. A new opera for synthetic and acoustic voices by librettists Mark Steidl and Katherine Skovira and composer Robert Whalen. Light art developed by Yael Erel and Avner Ben Natan with Carla Leitao. Reflectors are constructed from Augmented Stainless sheets in the topography of the vocal cords and mouth cavities. Thanks to RPI Fabrication shops Claire Morriarty and RPI research students Javier Torres, Ethan Aspiras Scott Sigmund. With support by lightexture, RPI School of Architecture and The Arts Thrive and Grow grant.
Mean Max Brew Works Troy Taproom
251 River St, Troy, NY
Mean Max Brew Works crafts some of the region’s finest artisanal ales and lagers and even created the Troy Glow Pale Ale, a signature hop-forward beer brewed to light up the night. You are invited to join them as the official passport pick-up location for Neon Nights, the Downtown BID Bar Crawl on November 8th starting at 6pm. Follow Mean Max on social for events and specials throughout the festival.
No Fun Troy
275 River St, Troy, NY
Live at No Fun on Nov. 9th, 7pm. HEY, GREASY PRESENTS a smorgasbord of rock-n-roll sights and sounds featuring SEX MEX from San Antonio, TX. Insanely catchy synth driven power pop/punk rock band on tour from the legendary Goner Fest. They are joined by Troy rockers Flavour, Bloodx3 and The Plisskens. Doors 7pm. Show 8pm. Tickets $12adv/$15door Glitch visuals by Derek Noetzel. Derek will be doing a demonstrational workshop at No Fun during the 11/9 Troyful Glow stroll. Ticket link: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/sex-mex-flavour-blood-x3-the-plisskens-tickets-1048053445067
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) School of Architecture
211 Broadway, Troy, NY
RPI lighting seminar architecture students, led by Asst. Prof. Yael Erel, will use projections to animate shadows in the Little Pecks/Lucas Confectionary patio. Special thanks to RPI PhD student and artist Natan Diacon-Furtado, and seminar students Nic Roscioli-Barran and Arianna Speleotes. FRI, Nov. 1, 7:00-8:30 p.m. and SAT Nov. 9, 7:00-8:30 p.m.
400 Dispensary & Lounge
400 River St, Troy, NY
We'll have glow-in-the-dark temporary tattoos to help illuminate the night! Grab a snack while you're here and watch some plants grow. For Troy Glow we are planning our very own lighting display. Stop by to see what's growing! 400 River Dispensary and Lounge is Troy's first and only farm-direct dispensary. We offer consumers a more personalized approach to purchasing their legal cannabis products.
Helderberg Meadworks
45 3rd St, Troy, NY
The Helderberg Meadworks serves a wide array of flavor-forward meads in their cozy downtown mead hall. It’s a perfect place to warm up on a dark and chilly November night as you take in Troy Glow site by site. It’s also the only place to drop off your stamped passport during the Neon Nights Bar Crawl on November 8th and win prizes! Follow their social for events and specials throughout the festival.
The Ruck
104 3rd St, Troy, NY
The Ruck, a downtown Troy staple known for its broad craft beer selection and world-class chicken wings, was Troy Glow 2024’s first business supporter. The Ruck is thrilled to welcome festival-goers not only to the bar crawl, but to a Glow-themed DJ Party featuring Ritz Carlton, November 9th at 8pm. Follow The Ruck on social for events and specials throughout the festival.
Clark House Hospitality
211 Broadway Troy, NY
Clark House Hospitality epitomizes downtown Troy’s Renaissance. Sprawling across an entire city block, Peck’s Arcade, Little Peck’s, Donna’s, and The Tavern all represent the entrepreneurial spirit of Vic Christopher. We are thrilled to partner with them as the host of the official Troy Glow Opening Reception on November 1st at 5pm at The Tavern.