Jul 16

Lumonics Immersed at the Dairy Arts Center on August 11th and 12th

Tickets are still available for Friday evening at 8 pm and the Saturday matinee at 1 pm.

“On August 11 and 12, the Lumonics team will take over the Dairy Arts Center’s Carsen Theater to host three performances of its dazzling, immersive light show, Lumonics Immersed.
Lumonics’ special presentation is part of the studio’s endeavor to introduce Boulder residents to its shimmering light sculptures. Lumonics Immersed is the perfect introduction to the Tanners’ unique art form in one of Boulder’s largest multi-disciplinary arts centers.”
Westword

Lumonics, co-founded by Dorothy Tanner and Mel Tanner, is one of the pioneering light art projects in the United States. Their unique art form combines elements of light, music, and sculptures to create captivating and immersive experiences for the audience.

In this special presentation created for the Carsen Theatre, the event begins with a short documentary, which provides insights into the history, inspiration, and creative process behind Lumonics. It offers a deeper understanding of the artists’ vision and their journey in developing the Lumonics art form.

The presentation proceeds with original visual music projection, accompanied by “members” of the Lumonics Light Orchestra on stage, that aims to transport viewers into a multisensory and immersive experience. It is based on Lumonics Immersed that is presented at Lumonics in North Denver.

Overall, this special presentation offers a unique opportunity for the audience to witness and participate in an art form, where light, music, and sculptures converge to create a truly unforgettable experience.

Carsen Theater
2590 Walnut Street
Boulder, CO 80302  + Google Map

$17-$20

Lumonics Immersed Takes Its Light Sculpture Experience to Boulder

“On August 11 and 12, the Lumonics team will take over the Dairy Arts Center’s Carsen Theater to host three performances of its dazzling, immersive light show, Lumonics Immersed.”

Article in Westword

View from the Mezzanine Control Booth

Jul 12

An Expanded Group Tour of Lumonics

The private event consists of a guided tour of one of the first and longest-running light art projects in the US. It concludes with a light and sound immersion. 

For Companies, Organizations, Friends, and Families

Up to 40 people
  $250 for 90 minutes
$300 for 120 minutes

Lumonics is a multisensory environment of light sculptures, video art projection, and  music. Your body is relaxed, and the right side of your brain (the creative, emotional side) is at full stimulation.  It is intended to bring you into a state of comfort and expanded awareness. 

Tour of the gallery, art studio, and the Lumonics School of Light Art

 brief history of Lumonics, among the first and longest-running light art projects in the United States

 light and sound immersion

 

The Light and Sound Immersion

Lumonics Immersed is an innovative approach to art and creativity, and can be a memorable and transformative experience. This one-of-a-kind experience that will leave you feeling inspired and energized.

We provide the setting so the audience members can exercise their imaginative powers and hopefully be inspired to go further in their endeavors.

The Elements:

 Mel and Dorothy Tanner’s Light Sculptures
Original Special Effects, Music, and Projection
 Lighting and the Effects Orchestrated Live by Lumonics’ Marc Billard

 

Lumonics is the creation of the late artists Dorothy Tanner (1923-2020)  and Mel Tanner (1925-1993).   Ms. Tanner was the recipient of the 2018 Denver Mayor’s Arts & Culture Award for Innovation in the Arts.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Public Health Institute of Denver Health’s Engaging Youth Expertise for Prevention (“EYE for Prevention”) came to Lumonics for the expanded tour and immersion. The program strives to prevent the onset of substance use among Denver’s youth. The purpose of the program is to provide young people in the Denver area with a safe, inclusive space to explore different forms of art as healthy coping mechanisms.

Here is a group photo at the end of the field trip:

 

The field trip can be tailored to meet specific needs.

Contact Info for Details and Rates: Lumonics Light & Sound Gallery 800 E. 73 Ave., Unit 11 Denver, CO 80229 303.568.9406 www.lumonics.net  lumonics@gmail.com

 

Art and Well-Being

The relationship between art and wellness has been important to Lumonics since its inception in the 1960s..

Shanna Shelby, the Program Administrator at the McNichols Civic Center Building in Denver, when nominating Dorothy Tanner for the Denver Mayor’s Award for Innovation in the Arts in 2018, wrote about the increasing awareness of how art and mental health are connected: “Several panels at the national AFTA (Americans for the Arts) conference this year explored artistic approaches to community health. I believe that Dorothy’s vision is a prime example of how arts and wellness intersect and promote public health goals.”

 

“Through the years people have commonly reported having profound spiritual and emotional experiences while contemplating the Lumonics art pieces. It is possible that Lumonics is exerting its effect by creating an immersive experience that feels safe and soothing, but also stimulating and expansive.” Jomar P. Suarez, MD Therapeutic Potential of Lumonics

 

“When perceiving an artwork in-person, the brain is ‘lit up, by something akin to beams from a lamp’…seeing or making art can play a crucial role in healing our bodies and minds.” excerpted from the Lumonics blog about the book, Art That Heals by Pierre Lemarquis

 

“Scientific studies increasingly confirm what human beings across cultures and throughout time have long recognized: we are wired for art. The arts in all of their modalities can improve our physical and mental health, amplify our ability to prevent, manage, or recover from disease challenges, enhance brain development in children, build more equitable communities, and foster well-being.  The International Arts + Mind Lab (IAM Lab)

Jun 15

Lumonics and the Summer Arts Program at Denver Health

Lumonics is excited to be part of the Summer Arts Program with the Public Health Institute at Denver Health. We are one of seven art workshops taking place weekly on Wednesdays in July and August. The program is initiated by Sedona Moreno-Castelan, in the Health Promotion Department at Public Health Institute at Denver Health.

The Public Health Institute of Denver Health’s Engaging Youth Expertise for Prevention (“EYE for Prevention”) program strives to prevent the onset of substance use among Denver’s youth. The purpose of the program is to provide young people in the Denver area with a safe, inclusive space to explore different forms of art as healthy coping mechanisms.

Lumonics hosted the first one on Wednesday, July 5th from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm. We gave a tour of our facility which includes the galleries, art studio, Lumonics School of Light Art, and conclude with a Lumonics immersive experience. Denver Health provided attendees with journals for them to express their thoughts and to sketch the light sculptures.

Jun 14

MOA Design & Build Program Coming to Lumonics




On June 19, 2023, Lumonics hosted this year’s interns attending the Museum of Outdoor Arts’ Design and Build Program. The Design and Build Program began in 1991, and is an opportunity for emerging artists, students and creative minds to express their creativity in collaborative art, architecture and design projects. The program generates temporary public art, exhibitions, installations and design concepts and offers lessons in collaborative teamwork, problem-solving and aesthetic and technical considerations. Since the inception of the program thousands of students throughout Colorado have collaborated on innumerable projects. Sites included Denver Union Station, Denver International Airport’s Peña Blvd., Cities of Englewood, Greenwood Village, Denver, Castle Rock, and Colorado Springs. * Tim Vacca is the Director of Programs & Communications.

We gave a tour including the gallery rooms, art studio, Lumonics School of Light Art, and the performance space, discussed the history of our project, and concluded with Lumonics Immersed.

 A recent article in the Washington Post discussed the Maker Movement which focused on workshops, mostly in San Francisco, that teach people how to work with their hands, and how they realize how gratifying it is.
Many attending are technology workers who sit in front of computer screens all day. Some companies set up classes to team-build. 

Comments by Participants at Workshops
“It’s tremendously grounding, and it’s meditative…” 
“had this deep sense of accomplishment, and it was so incredibly satisfying…”
“I like learning how to be competent at something. At the end of it — look, I have this thing,”
“You’re tapping into a history of human craftsmanship that’s been around for the entire existence of our species.”
“As people spend less time commuting, they have more time for hobbies, and more of a need for connection.”  


Lumonics School of Light Art, part of the Maker Movement
This kind of gratification is what Dorothy Tanner had in mind when she founded the Lumonics School of Light Art in 2018, shortly after she received the Denver Mayor’s award for Innovation in the Arts, and two years before she passed. A student makes a cube, electrifies it with an LED bulb, and then “artifies” it.

The cube has significance in the history of the Lumonics artform because it is one of the first lighted shapes created by the Tanners in the 1960s. You can read student comments and see many cubes that have been completed.

 Read our blog which links to the Post article.

Cube in the graphic was created by by Tim Vacca, one of the first attendees
of the Lumonics School of Light Art when it opened in 2018

Students constructing cubes at the Lumonics School of Light Art

* excerpted from the Design and Build webpage on the MOA website