The streets of Lyon are usually quiet this time of night. Right now, however, they are alive with a boisterous crowd and brilliant lights scattered across the city, from a lamp the size of a house to a fountain lit up with dazzling precision. Tonight is the Festival of Lights, better known as Fête des Lumières—and at just past nine in the evening on this cold December day in 2014, the celebration is just beginning.
The Fête des Lumières is a four-day festival that began in 1634 in Lyon, France. Lyon, at the time, was suffering from a deadly plague. Its leaders prayed for the Virgin Mary to spare the city, and celebrated in Mary’s name when the plague subsided. The celebration was a simple and local one that quickly grew into a worldwide phenomenon. The only tradition that remains from that solemn time is the practice of burning candles in colorful glass, which people arrange on their windowsills. These candles brighten even the darkest of streets with ethereal color, but one must be there at the right time—they are only in place on December 8, the final day of the Fête des Lumières.
A treasure trove of modern art and rich tradition precedes this vibrant display of candles. The Fête for 2014 displayed over forty exhibits, each created by different artists from around the world. Even stores and businesses take part, with an annual competition for the best shop window in which anyone in the world can vote. Every year, the same the artistic events take place at two of Lyon’s landmarks: an extravagant lightshow at the Place des Terreaux, and a bank of bright, colorful lights projected onto the Basilica of Fourvière. Otherwise, no two Fêtes are the same, aside from that each one draws anywhere from three to four million attendees every year.
In all the years that this Fête has been celebrated, whether on a local scale or as the grand festival of today, there has only ever been one incident that left its continuation in doubt. In 2015, just weeks before the Fête would begin, Lyon’s mayor, Gérard Collomb, announced that the Fête des Lumières would be shortened. Instead of four days, the Fête would be celebrated only on December 8. And instead of numerous exhibitions produced by a variety of artists, there would only be one. This exhibit, Regards, would project paintings done by famous artists across the facades of the buildings of Lyon.
It would also project the names of one hundred and thirty people upon the walls of Lyon’s quay.
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A photo depicting some of the exhibit Regards, by Daniel Knipper. It lists several names.
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For almost all of 2015, French officials were on edge following the shooting at Charlie Hebdo in January. Over the following months, there were other acts of violence that were cause for concern: the stabbing of French guards outside a Jewish community center in February, the explosion scare of a factory in June, and the stabbing and shooting attack on a passenger train in August (dramatized in the film The 15:17 to Paris). ISIL claimed responsibility for these attacks—and would for future attacks as well.
On November 13, 2015, France announced a state of emergency following six distinct attacks in Paris. The first was three suicide bombers at the Stade de France, where President Hollande was in attendance; the next four were at various restaurants and cafes around the city, and caused in thirty-nine deaths. The last was a mass shooting at the Bataclan theater, where ninety people lost their lives and many more were injured. In total, one hundred and thirty people were killed and hundreds more injured.
The tragedy of these events caused heartbreak and fueled widespread fear. But this mourning inspired action and résistance. Parisians opened their doors to those who were too scared to travel home, and, as the days went on, placed flowers and candles on memorials for the victims.
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Lyon’s response to these events was a show not of fanciful lights but of solidarity. Instead of the brilliant displays, residents and visitors alike placed candles on windowsills, on the stairs of City Hall, and along the bridges and streets and roads that wound through the city. The exhibit Regards was projected on the façades across the city as a tribute to the victims in Paris, flashing each victim’s name across the quay. The Fête of 2015 was a celebration of unity in the face of horror and a memorial to those who were lost; it was at once a somber and quiet affair and a fierce and passionate promise. A plague had once unified the people of Lyon, and now a national crisis drew the Lyonnais and all of France together.
The following year’s Fête was strong and exuberant. Though it was shortened to just three days, artists displayed exhibits that showcased their skills and creativity and Lyon’s citizens lit their candles as they always had. The Fête of 2015 was not forgotten and as a result security for the Fête of 2016 was heightened, but still, the proud lights shone in the night. The same was true of the Fête of 2017. But every year since, the Fête celebrates its full four days, displaying a testament to the resolve and solidarity of a people.
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Candles and messages left at the foot of the statue of Louis XIV. The message at center reads, “Give me hatred… and from it I’ll make you love.”