In this day and age, the majority of our day is spent on our mobile phones scrolling through social media posts that don’t really make us think about anything. It seems like we would rather spend time with smart technologies than talking to our loved ones. It is obvious that our obsession with technology is getting out of hand, and it sometimes affects our relationship with our loved ones. This distance between people can often become an inspiration for modern art.

The Amsterdam Light Festival is one of the largest light festivals in Europe, hosted annually since 2012

During the winter period, artists from all over the world take part in the light festival, creating unique art installations that inspire and enlighten both its visitors and fellow artists.

Gali May Lucas is a British installation artist and one of the participants of the festival of lights. This year, together with sculptor Karoline Hinz, she created a series of statues, featuring people focused on their phones with warm light illuminating their faces. The modern sculptures are titled Absorbed by light.

The artist says she wanted to create something that everyone could relate to:

“Cycling to work in the mornings, I see people lost in the light of their mobile phones. On park benches, on the tram, in restaurants – no one talks to each other anymore.”

“The white light and white noise is a bit eerie if you look at it in a certain way – and you’ll see this come through strongly in the final work,” says Gali.

If you’re in Amsterdam right now, you can see the installation first hand in front of the Hermitage!