① VIEW
Klanglicht 2026
TIME – Cosmos, History, Present, Future
KLANGLICHT 2026 invites participating artists to stretch time, fragment it, or project it into speculative futures, to uncover traces, illuminate forgotten narratives, or make historical rhythms audible. Whether in real time, slowed down, or bringing time to a standstill, we explore whether art can create alternative models of time and build bridges between historical spaces and contemporary forms of expression. Past, present, and future do not exist sequentially, but are simultaneously present—in the form of light, sound, and atmosphere, the cosmos of Eggenberg Palace is reinterpreted and made tangible.
Eggenberg Palace is more than just a Baroque monument: it is a built time machine. Its architecture follows a precise astronomical-calendar system—365 windows, 52 doors, 24 state rooms—transforming the place into a symbolic clock that has been measuring, interpreting, and staging time for over 350 years. This interplay of rationality, myth, and imagination forms the starting point for the curatorial concept of KLANGLICHT 2026.
KLANGLICHT, the Festival of Sound and Vision, is organized on behalf of Bühnen Graz and has been taking the magic of two central elements of theater out into the public space since 2015: using light and sound to inspire and touch people, awaken emotions and create moments of wonder. What once began with a light and sound installation in front of Graz Opera House has developed into Austria’s largest light and sound festival.
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② REVIEW
That was KLANGLICHT 2025
KLANGLICHT celebrated an anniversary in 2025: for the 10th time, Graz was transformed into a frenzy of colors and shapes, music and texts: see and hear, immerse yourself, feel, be touched. Renowned artists from around the world and young up-and-coming talents celebrated a true feast for the senses with their installations: in billowing clouds of fog, between thousands of mirrors, in the spotlight and at the same time between heaven and earth, new worlds of light and sound opened up to the audience. We saw what might not have been there at all and heard what we had never heard before. We lost ourselves in this universe, which shone in full bloom only to ultimately decay again. What remained? The memory of an intoxication in which perhaps we too rediscovered or reinvented ourselves.
The evaluation shows that 108,310 people attended the KLANGLICHT Festival 2025 on the four evenings between October 24 and 27. This once again made the festival one of the largest and most impressive art events in Austria.
KLANGLICHT 2025 was organized on behalf of Bühnen Graz and has been bringing the magic of two central elements of theater into public spaces since 2015. Light and sound are used to inspire and move people, arouse emotions, and create moments of wonder.
Comments on the festival
“We are overwhelmed by this huge demand, by the fact that art in public spaces attracts such a large audience—and, of course, by the fact that everything went so smoothly,” says Bernhard Rinner, managing director of Bühnen Graz and organizer of KLANGLICHT.
KLANGLICHT curator Birgit Lill-Schnabl is also enthusiastic:
“With the works of our artists, we were able to touch and inspire so many people emotionally this year—that is the greatest compliment for us.”