The world’s largest light sculpture built with light-emitting diodes is glowing again. The large-scale public art project, The Bay Lights, created by Leo Villareal and launched along the Bay Bridge in 2013, went dark when its original two-year permit expired in 2015 and bridge cables needed maintenance. But non-profit arts organization Illuminate raised the necessary $4 million in private funds to ensure that it be reinstalled and relit starting on Saturday, January 30. Villareal networked 25,000 individually programable white LEDs made by Philips to create patterns that flash across 1.8 miles of the western span of the bridge, and the new bulbs are designed to withstand the Bay’s harsh environmental conditions over time. The State of California is the relit project’s new steward, and, using funds from the grant, Caltrans will keep the lights on from dusk until dawn each night. It may not be golden, but the Bay Bridge is shining once again.

By Elizabeth Varnell

Pictured: The Bay Lights, created by Leo Villareal, relit along the western span of the Bay Bridge in San Francisco.
Photo courtesy of Illuminate

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