Tesla – Light Gallery

The Tesla – Light Gallery continues the legacy of Nikola Tesla. Thanks to him, Novi Sad was one of the first illuminated cities in Europe.

On 31 December, The Tesla – Light Gallery creates a completely new ambiance for the Baroque jewel of Novi Sad, the Petrovaradin Fortress, and Suburbium through the interplay of light and sound, as well as interactive audio-visual art installations. The artworks were installed in Suburbium, the tunnel, near the Clock, in the park at the Fortress, and in the Planetarium.

The first Tesla – Light Gallery marked the year when Novi Sad became the European Capital of Culture. It was a product of the creative synergy of several renowned international artists from various cities that held the title of European Capital of Culture. Award-winning visual artist Petko Tančev, from Plovdiv, Bulgaria (ECoC 2019), used the latest technology to create virtual worlds that disrupted conventional perceptions of physical reality. Ivan Marušić Klif, a prominent figure in the Croatian media art scene and director of the Rijeka Light Festival Vector Hack in 2018 and 2020 (ECoC 2020–2021), contributed with his experimental approach. Another key contributor to the exhibition was Italian artist Alberto Novello, who repurposed deconstructed analogue devices from the past—such as oscilloscopes, early gaming consoles, video mixers, and lasers—to explore the relationship between sound and light through contemplative installations and performances.

In 2023, the Tesla – Light Gallery featured works by Chida Yasuhiro from Japan, one of Artdex’s ‘9 Brilliant Light Artists,’ Pavla Beranová from the Czech Republic, an award-winning creator of interactive installations and light design, and Dorijan Kolundžija, the founder of the new media studio Gallery 12 and a contributor to the Museum of the Future in Dubai. Other participants included Goran Despotovski, a representative of the Association of Fine Artists of Vojvodina (SULUV), as well as artists Dejan Stojkov, Anđelko Popić, and others.

The fact that Nikola Tesla had a photographic memory, implemented most of his inventions directly without drafts, and knew six great works of world literature by heart formed the backbone of all the works that made up 2024’s Tesla – Light Gallery. These works—Faust (Goethe), The Mountain Wreath (Njegoš), Divine Comedy (Dante), Childe Harold (Byron), Eugene Onegin (Pushkin), and Hamlet (Shakespeare) — served not only as inspiration but also as the foundation for creating new artworks. The artists who brought the Tesla – Light Gallery to life in 2024 included Monika Bilbija Ponjavić, PhD, Miloš Martinov, Đorđe Popović, Dejan Stojkov, Tijana Jevrić, Ivana Janošev, and Dutch artists Alex Prooper and Simone van Dam. The project also featured contributions from students of the Academy of Arts and the Faculty of Technical Sciences in Novi Sad.

Photo: Vladimir Veličković, Ervin Kovač