GLOW

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Academy Street Artwork Projects (ASAP) presents GLOW

Glow is a temporary outdoor display of technology and light art installations on view in Downtown Cary. These pop-up installations illuminate the darkest part of winter, surprising and delighting viewers when the artworks are discovered. GLOW will create a dynamic sense of place that adds energy to the street environment, creating memories and moments of celebration for all who encounter each work of art.

2026 glow map

Map of 2026 GLOW installations

Cary's Annual Lantern Parade will kick-off this coming year's GLOW outdoor exhibition on Saturday, January 10, 2026 at 6pm! Join us as hundreds brave the cold and gather with their lights and handcrafted paper lanterns to illuminate Downtown Cary Park together.

Collage of photographs of glowing lanterns by Brian Magee Photography

GLOW 2026 Installations

Bryant Holsenbeck : A Gathering of Moons

Location: Post Office

Bryant Holsenbeck is a Durham based, environmental artist and educator. Driven by a desire for conservation Bryant sees potential in the everyday objects we discard and uses said refuse to create her sculptures. Teens and adults in the community had the opportunity to participate in the construction of this piece; inspiring them to think critically about how waste impacts the environment and consequently ourselves.

Tangled monofilament line collected by the Duke Marine lab in Beaufort , NC adorns this sculpture; influenced by the 95 known moons of Jupiter. Monofilament is made to glow and reflect light so that it can be seen in the water and hopefully not lost at sea. This sculpture glows with reflected light, in the same way that our moon, and all the moons in our solar system glow with reflected light from the same sun. “A Gathering of Moons” is about reuse, community, and inspired by the vast night sky.

"Many thanks to artist/designer Andrew Preiss who saw my vision and made the globes as well as to the students and friends who have helped make this project whole by weaving the materials together." -Bryant Holsenbeck

Learn more about Bryant Holsenbeck's studio practice.

Not actual art that will be featured. For conceptual purposes only

Artist's sketch of the site and sculpture Filament used in the sculpture

group of teens holding up large colorful spheres

Artist Bryant Holsenbeck and the Cary Teen Council

bryant and andrew

Artist Bryant Holsenbeck and metal fabricator Andrew Preiss

bryant and team Bryant and her team of assistants, friends, and teams from

Town of Cary: public works and public art

Brittney Flood: The Persistence of Almost

Location: Parking Deck

Britt Flood is a North Carolina based painter and public artist who transforms overlooked spaces into sites of visual poetry. Her light art installations are an extension of her gestural drawing and painting practice.

These large scale marks mimic oversized sketches, crafted from hundreds of yards of looping glowing tubes. The floral forms climb the walls; speaking to the persistence of a single mark, repeated and reaching and how that can grow into something expansive. Through light, scale, and movement; “The Persistence of Almost” manifests the experience of ongoing growth, tenacity, and the quiet intangible moments that define actualization.

Learn more about Britt Flood's murals.

Not actual art that will be featured. For conceptual purposes only

flood with boom lift britt flood install

Britt Flood on an 80ft boom lift, installing her artwork

Flood next to the solar powered generator which supports her installation.

This light art installation is the only GLOW piece this year running on 100% Solar Energy!

Britt on the roof, celebrating the first lighting of her piece.

Julia Gartrell: Cool Evening Stars & Warm Log Cabin

Location: First Cary United Methodist Church & Academy Pavilion

Julia Gartrell is a North Carolina based sculptor who uses a wide range of materials including wood, ceramic, textile and found objects to create work exploring material culture and history.

These illuminated quilted windows bring warmth and comforting patterns to the spaces in which they are installed. Quilting is a craft based in thrift and practicality, but it also provided a creative outlet for anonymous makers in history, most of whom were women. By using traditional quilt block patterns in transparent window film, each space is transformed into a familiar but modernized version of pattern piecing. Placed at each end of downtown, these warm quilts frame the urban area and cozily illuminate the dark winter evenings.

Learn more about Julia Gartrell's projects!

Not actual art that will be featured. For conceptual purposes only

julia ladder church install

julia installation julia install notes

A note from the artist about the process:

As I was installing, I was thinking about a lot of things, especially how quilting is a craft coming from thrift and ingenuity and it is inherently imperfect. As things weren't lining up EXACTLY as I cut them, I was thinking of the Leonard Cohen lyric, from his song Anthem: "Ring the bells that still can ring // Forget your perfect offering // There is a crack, a crack in everything //That's how the light gets in." And ultimately, I think the piecing of material where things didn't quiiiite fit speak so beautifully to the history of quilting and lend the piece a painterly and human quality. One thing I enjoyed and did not anticipate was how, with the sun moving throughout the day, the colors from the interior view of the piece change very dramatically--- the "cinnamon" colored blocks looked anywhere from a dark brown to a light peach through the day. Anyways, I guess what I'm saying is that this project has been fun, humbling, and I'm so happy to see it completed!

cool evening stars II

Cool Evening Stars installed at First Cary United Methodist Church

warm log cabin

warm log cabin interior

Warm Log Cabin installed in Academy Pavilion's Market 317

Robin Vuchnich: Phantom Spring

Location: Ivey-Ellington

Robin Vuchnich is a Tennessee-based New Media artist and founder of XO Immersive, an interactive art studio specializing in a wide array of digital installations. These installations leverage light-based and interactive art to engage with public science, social change, community, and the natural world.

The historic Ivy-Ellington house was built in the 1870s and is a classic example of Gothic Revival architecture. A popular design in the mid-19thcentury; it was commonly promoted in rural areas because its complex lines and defined silhouette were thought to complement a natural setting. The pointed windows and steeply sloped roofs are designed to direct the gaze upward towards the sky. Like the architects who designed the Ivy-Ellington over 150 years ago, Vuchnich uses this historic house as a platform to share her reverence for nature.

Using 3D projection mapping technology, Vuchnich projects a kaleidoscope of flowers that conforms to every detail of the historic home. Phantom Spring reminds us of the beauty and color of spring, even in the darkest part of winter.

Learn more about XO Immersive and Robin Vuchnich

Not actual art that will be featured. For conceptual purposes only

Robin Vurnich's colorful floral projections on a small house

Helen Seebold: Meditation Labyrinth

location: Ivy Ellington lawn

Coming mid February!

Helen Seebold is a multimedia artist based in Cary, North Carolina. Her community-driven, installations encourage viewers to explore the possibilities of public spaces, through interactive art.

A labyrinth, unlike a maze, leads to a center and back out again; there is no right or wrong path. Walking the labyrinth invites introspection and might be meditative, playful, or mysterious. This installation of “Lighted Labyrinth” adds cool revitalizing blue light for the participant’s evocative evening or nighttime walk. Seebold’s love of nature and interest in ancient global traditions fuels her creativity, inviting the viewer to reflect on the beauty of the living Earth and their place in it.

Wind your way to the center during a quiet moment of reflection, or listen to one of three accompanying audio tracks, here and learn more about Helen Seebold.

Not actual art that will be featured. For conceptual purposes only

Helen Seebold's labyrinth made of blue lights

Erik Beerbower: Find Your Happy Place

Location: Downtown Cary Park near the Library

Erik Beerbower is a North Carolina-based sculptor and educator. His larger than life structures are often interactive and use color, form, and sound to spark joy, play, and wonder within the community.

One of the driving concepts behind Beerbower’s work is presence; creating a multisensory experience to encourage the public to pause and be fully engaged in the moment. Find Your Happy Place creates space and the opportunity for the community to reflect on the happiness already present in each of our lives through light, music, and a welcoming place to rest.

Click here for some feel good music and to learn more about Erik Beerbower's studio.

Not actual art that will be featured. For conceptual purposes only

Erik Beerbower's digital sketch of a colorful bench sculpture