'Brilliant' Scheme artists revealed for Lumiere 2025

Artichoke, the organisation behind Durham Lumiere, has announced that five artists have been selected for BRILLIANT, the small-scale commissioning scheme organised by Lumiere and sponsored by EMG Solicitors, headquartered in Durham. BRILLIANT encourages anyone to submit a bright idea for art made using light.

Their artworks will be debuted as part of Lumiere, the UK light art biennial, produced by
Artichoke and commissioned by Durham County Council with additional support from
Arts Council England, North East Combined Authority and a raft of additional funders
and supporters, which will take place later this year over three nights, Thursday 13 to
Saturday 15 November 2025.

Selected from over 150 applicants, all five impressed the selection panel with their creative and
unique ideas for artworks using light.

The successful creatives are:

Kevin Edworthy is a retired council officer, who came to Durham over 30 years ago, fell
in love and never left. He is inspired by street photography and the people of Durham.
Lewis Hobson, also from County Durham, has a background in graffiti and mural art
which informs his work with the local community.

Mani Kambo is a multi-disciplinary artist from Newcastle upon Tyne, whose work
focuses on objects, routines and rituals distilled both from the everyday and mythology.

Leicester-based Mohamad Aaqib Anvarmia is a fine artist and sculptor whose work
explores the intersection of Islamic art, geometry, and contemporary design.

Hannah Ayre from Edinburgh, has a multi-disciplinary practice, specialising in bringing
art out of traditional settings and into accessible public spaces.

Kate Harvey, Artichoke Director of Projects says, “As always, the high standard of
BRILLIANT applications meant that the selection process was very challenging. Our five
selected artists presented ideas that use light to illustrate their passions, interests or
personal experiences against the magical landscape of Durham, while also taking into
consideration Artichoke’s aims to deliver a sustainable and environmentally-conscious
event. Our producers will be working with the selected participants over the next few
months, to help bring their creative ideas to life and giving them the chance to
experience how a large-scale, free-to-attend event is put together.”

Cllr Lyndsey Fox, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for economy and
partnerships, says, “BRILLIANT has a great track record in giving new and emerging
artists the opportunity to exhibit their work at a world-renowned event like Lumiere. It’s
great to see two County Durham artists among the five, especially one of our former
officers. This will be a particularly special moment for them and we look forward to
celebrating their work and seeing it come to life during the festival.

“We also hope it provides inspiration for others to follow in their footsteps and share
their own creative ideas. This commitment to providing a platform for the wider
community demonstrates one of the many ways that we are the Culture County and we
look forward to seeing these fabulous installations later in the year.”

EMG Solicitors returns as the sponsor of the BRILLIANT national commissioning
scheme for the third time. EMG Solicitors is a growing firm headquartered in Durham
that has supported Lumiere events since 2017.

Emma Gaudern, Managing Director of EMG Solicitors says, "Lumiere is an amazing
event, not just for Durham City but for those in the wider area too. We sponsored
installations in 2017, 2019 and became sponsors of the BRILLIANT national scheme for
the first time in 2021. This year we have been lucky enough to be involved in the
judging panel as part of our sponsorship of BRILLIANT in 2025. Lumiere is loved by our
own team, their families and our community and so we really enjoy being part of making
the event happen. The team at Artichoke are an inspiring bunch, great to work with and
they offer so many opportunities for like-minded businesses to get involved.”

BRILLIANT was launched in 2011 as a brand new commissioning strand for Lumiere, to
offer opportunities for artists and non-artists alike to develop and produce their ideas for
artworks using the medium of light to be showcased at the festival. Since then, the
scheme has fostered creative talent in the North East, providing a platform over the
years for emerging artists and non-practitioners to share their best creative ideas.

Previous BRILLIANT participants, some of whom had never before practiced as an
artist, have gone on to develop artistic careers. Mick Stephenson, a Durham-based
builder, was selected initially in 2011 and went on to exhibit at Lumiere festivals in
Durham and London, before becoming a full-time artist. Beth J Ross had been a
teacher in Durham when she was selected in 2015, to make three neon signs in her five
year old's handwriting, responding to an 11th century text found in Durham Cathedral.
Her work has since been recognised through several public commissions; she was
co-artist in residence at Cresswell Pele Tower in Northumberland for the year
2023-2024 , and a member of the Advisory Group for Middlesbrough Institute of Modern
Art (MIMA). Chris Plant was part of the 2017 BRILLIANT cohort, and has gone onto
exhibit artworks as part of Coventry City of Culture 2021, Wigan Light Night 2022,
Norwich LoveLight 2022, and Baylight festival, Morecombe 2023.

The five BRILLIANT creatives in the 2025 cohort will spend the time from now until Lumiere in
November, developing their pieces, adapting their designs to fit available locations and
physically testing and creating their ideas, working closely with Artichoke’s technical experts.
Precise details about each lightwork will be kept tightly under wraps until the full Lumiere
programme is revealed in September.

To be the first to know what’s happening, sign up to the newsletter at the event website,
Lumiere-festival.com.

Lumiere Durham is a central pillar of The Culture County, the long-term creative
regeneration strategy born out of the Durham 2025 UK City of Culture campaign.