Urban Serenity — A Pause in Pink Light
Light sculpture installation | 2023
Aluminium frame, pink LED strip lights
Can a colour change how we feel?
Urban Serenity is a series of immersive light sculptures designed to offer a calming interruption to the chaos of city life. Exhibited outside the State Library of Victoria as part of the City of Melbourne’s Test Sites Program, the work invites passers-by to step into a wash of pink light. The colour pink is shown in psychological studies to reduce aggression and promote relaxation.
Set within the fast-paced rhythm of Swanston Street, on the State Library of Victoria forecourt, the installation provided a space for stillness, reflection, and gentle reprieve. By transforming public space through light and colour, Urban Serenity explores how subtle sensory shifts can help us reconnect with ourselves — even in the heart of the city.
How might your body respond if you simply stood still?
Step Into Stillness: Behind the Work
Watch the short film below to hear more about the making of Urban Serenity and how pink light can transform public space into a moment of calm.
Filmed outside the State Library of Victoria, the video captures the artwork in motion and explores the thinking behind it — from the science of colour psychology to the power of stillness in a fast-paced world. It’s a quiet invitation to pause, reflect, and consider how art can gently shift the way we feel in public places.
