Sapporo White Illumination, one of the traditional sights of winter in Sapporo, is adding an immersive art installation this season. The "Sapporo White Illumination Nakajima Park Site" (January 9 to 28, 2027) has been newly added as a special affiliated venue of the Sapporo International Art Festival 2027 (SIAF2027), and the SIAF Executive Committee will take part as its supervisor. SIAF2027 runs from January 16 to February 21, 2027.
Sapporo White Illumination began in 1981 with about 1,000 light bulbs in Odori Park (Odori Nishi 2-chome), and this year marks its 46th edition. The Nakajima Park Site is a new venue added this year. There, ENESS, an Australian art and technology studio taking part in SIAF2027, will present a large installation that will be shown to the public for the first time anywhere in the world.
About ENESS
ENESS has won numerous international awards and draws attention around the world. The studio presents its work not only in museums but also in public spaces that anyone can freely enter, and one past exhibition attracted more than 10,000 visitors on its first night alone. Many of its works are highly entertaining and change or react to visitors' actions, and they have delighted audiences in Australia, where the studio is based, as well as in Europe and Asia.
ENESS is currently creating a new installation using AI technology for the Sapporo White Illumination Nakajima Park Site, which opens ahead of SIAF2027.
ENESS's work was also shown at the previous SIAF2024. For SIAF2027, a giant work larger than the previous exhibit, IWAGUMI Air Scape, will be shown at the Sapporo Snow Festival Odori Site (Odori Nishi 2-chome) from Thursday, February 4 to Sunday, February 21, 2027. AOAO SAPPORO, an aquarium in central Sapporo, has a permanent Nature Aquarium that inspired IWAGUMI Air Scape, so together with the Snow Festival site, visitors can experience this world both outdoors and indoors.
Each venue shows a different ENESS work suited to its location. From early January to late February, ENESS's works will light up the streets of Sapporo with art and technology.
ENESS Works to Experience in Sapporo From January to February 2027
SNOWFISH (スノーフィッシュ)
- Exhibition period: Saturday, January 9 to Thursday, January 28, 2027
- Venue: Sapporo White Illumination Nakajima Park Site
- Organizers: City of Sapporo, Sapporo Chamber of Commerce and Industry (札幌商工会議所), Sapporo Tourism Association (札幌観光協会)
- Supervision: SIAF Executive Committee (札幌国際芸術祭実行委員会)
- Management: Sapporo White Illumination Executive Committee (さっぽろホワイトイルミネーション実行委員会)
SNOWFISH, ENESS's latest work, is a group of curious creatures that flock together while gazing at visitors with large eyes. The creatures came about through an experimental process in which AI processing was applied to ENESS's original designs. The large balloons, whose motifs include underwater creatures inspired by AOAO SAPPORO and sea urchins evoking Hokkaido, feature effects in which light and sound change in response to visitors' movements. Some of the balloons have entrances, so visitors can enjoy different experiences outside and inside them.
While drawing visitors into a special space, the work also raises questions about AI: what role does AI play in art created by humans, and can the strange and unpredictable expressions AI produces bring us new ways of seeing and new values?
IWAGUMI Air Scape (イワグミ・エア・スケープ)
- Exhibition period: Thursday, February 4 to Sunday, February 21, 2027
- Venue: SIAF2027 Sapporo Snow Festival Odori Site (Odori Nishi 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo)
- Organizers: SIAF Executive Committee (札幌国際芸術祭実行委員会), City of Sapporo
- Cooperation: Sapporo Snow Festival Executive Committee (さっぽろ雪まつり実行委員会)
ENESS "IWAGUMI Air Scape". Photo by Finbarr FALLON
IWAGUMI Air Scape is one of ENESS's signature works. At an exhibition in Italy in 2025, it drew more than 10,000 visitors on the first night alone. Visitors can freely walk among and around giant rocks (huge balloons) that stand up to 14 m tall. The work sharply contrasts elements of vast nature with the urban environment, and it presents a message about nature and harmony.
Note: AOAO SAPPORO has a zone with a permanent "Nature Aquarium" created by ADA aquascape creators. The Nature Aquarium, in which iwagumi (rock arrangement) aquascapes that depict landscapes with stones appear like paintings, was the inspiration for IWAGUMI Air Scape. In Japan, it can be seen at AOAO SAPPORO and at Sumida Aquarium in Tokyo.
Details are available on the official SIAF website.
