Our project, “Newburgh Night Lights,” is a weekend of surprise, family-friendly projection art that turns Newburgh’s buildings into temporary canvases. In collaboration between NYC gallery NowHere and artist Motomichi Nakamura, we’ll stage a series of free pop-up projections on Friday and Saturday nights in winter (Jan/Feb), when the early sunset can make the city feel quiet and cold. Instead of staying home, we want neighbors to bundle up, walk around, and see their streets literally light up.
Motomichi is a Japanese-born, Parsons-trained, award-winning projection and immersive artist based in Croton-on-Hudson. His bold, animated works have appeared in museums and public spaces worldwide, from New York’s New Museum and the MTA’s Fulton Center to large-scale festivals abroad. Bringing this work to Newburgh is a way to say: world-class art belongs on our blocks, too. The projections are wordless, graphic, and joyful—easy for kids, teens, and adults to enjoy together, no art-world knowledge required.
We’ll choose a small cluster of walkable sites, most likely 2 key destinations, that show off Newburgh’s historic architecture rather than just “official” art venues. During setup, we’ll host a hands-on workshop for kids and teens interested in digital art and projection, giving them a chance to learn directly from Motomichi, try ideas, and see some of their experiments in the final projections. We’ll spread the word through schools, local businesses, and community groups so people who don’t usually go to openings still feel invited.
Our goal is simple: create a free, open-to-all light event that makes people proud of their city, sparks conversations on the sidewalk, and plants the seed for future collaborative projects between Newburgh artists, residents, and visiting creatives.