Lyon, the lighting expert

A pioneer in the field, Lyon began to think in political, technical and artistic terms about how the city is lit decades ago, and set up a municipal department devoted to urban lighting. Back in 1989, the city initiated its first Plan Lumière (Lighting Plan), which now encompasses the permanent illumination of 370 landmarks – the most recent addition being the Masaryk Footbridge in Vaise (9th arrondissement). By making light an essential ingredient of its urban planning, Lyon has been showcasing its architectural heritage, noteworthy monuments and rivers, as well as hills and main traffic arteries for 30 years. Over time, the city has acquired globally recognised expertise and has fashioned its night-time cityscape, designing atmospheres tailored to each district’s identity.

A virtuous ecosystem

Convinced that lighting plays a key role in urban, economic and social development, Lyon has built a whole ecosystem around the discipline in just two decades. In 2002, LUCI (Lighting Urban Community International) was set up: a global network that now has 70 member cities. Its purpose? Facilitate exchanges of best practices, and collectively develop a vision for the sector’s future. In 2008, the Cluster Lumière (Light Cluster) was founded to drive virtuous synergies by combining technological innovation, training and uses. This skills network now spans all the sector’s stakeholders (laboratories, research centres, manufacturers, engineering design firms, lighting designers, distributors, installers, etc. - 137 companies in total) as well as France’s first Campus Lumière. The cluster’s members thus cover all indoor and outdoor lighting markets and supply their know-how (from designing projects, products and associated services through to their construction, operation and maintenance) – and thus sparks serious business opportunities worldwide.

Lyon Light Festival Forum

Leveraging its lighting expertise, the City of Lyon holds the Lyon Light Festival Forum every year during the Festival of Lights, in conjunction with LUCI and the Cluster Lumière. A must-visit for the sector’s professionals, the forum runs sessions where the various lighting design players enjoy quality interactions. The event – which also includes seminars, talks, tours, and platform events with artists, designers, foreign delegations and organisers of foreign festivals – enables all these specialists to survey the latest artistic and technical trends in the market.