Meet the Light Artist: Daphne & Ang
Daphne Ting-Yu Chu and Shu Ang Yeh are London-based Taiwanese artists working at the intersection of interactive technology, light, and storytelling to create immersive, participatory experiences. Daphne’s practice spans audiovisual performance and interactive installations, while Ang is a lighting designer whose work includes theatre, immersive environments, and architectural lighting. Together, they create projects that use light to shape emotion, movement, and connection in public space. Learn more about their creative practice and plans for Light Up Kilburn in the interview below.
How did you get started as a light artist, and what does Kilburn mean to you?
We began our careers as lighting designers for live performance, exploring how lighting can express emotion and story. With years of experience, we started experimenting with different approaches to storytelling, aiming to create more intimate and immersive experiences for the audience. This curiosity led us toward creating interactive installations where people move beyond observation into active participation, engaging not only with the work, but with one another through embodied experience.
How does your work connect to the Light Up Kilburn 2026 themes of biodiversity and women’s safety?
Our installation, Natural Concerto, responds to biodiversity by using site-specific sound recordings—birds, insects, wind, water—from Kilburn Grange Park. As visitors engage with the installation, these sound fragments seamlessly blend into a collective soundscape, mirroring the essential interdependence found in thriving ecosystems. Through this shared act of discovery and play, residents experience how individual actions build into collective resonance. This sense of co-living and cooperation nurtures trust and connection, which in turn supports women’s experience of safety at night.
“The installation becomes both a symbol and a platform, revealing the unseen richness of biodiversity and reminding participants that safety grows strongest when a community chooses to safeguard one another.”
What can visitors expect from your piece at the festival?
Visitors can expect an immersive, playful, and calming experience. Touch-activated lights and sounds respond directly to their presence, transforming individual gestures into a collective “concerto.”
What materials or techniques are you using, and why?
We combine touch sensors, programmable LED lighting, and spatialised sound to create an interactive environment. These technologies allow us to translate human touch on plants into visual and sonic responses. The structure incorporates urban-inspired forms softened by organic movement, symbolising the coexistence of city life and natural ecosystems.
“We design with durability and modularity in mind, ensuring the installation remains robust, safe, and responsive throughout the festival.”
What do you anticipate will be the biggest challenge of creating your work outdoors?
Weather is always the biggest unknown—moisture, temperature shifts, and wind all impact electronics and materials. The plants that interact with the technology also have specific requirements, but the species that meet these criteria may not withstand colder weather, making plant selection an additional challenge.
What impact do you hope your work will have on the community, and how can locals get involved?
We hope Natural Concerto strengthens residents’ connection to the park, sparks curiosity about local biodiversity, and nurtures a sense of collective care, especially around night-time safety. Locals can get involved by joining our sound-recording workshop, contributing ecological audio to the installation, or simply participating and co-creating the concerto with others during the festival.
“The installation reveals hidden layers of the park’s ecology while creating a shared moment of curiosity, cooperation, and wonder.”
What are you most looking forward to at Light Up Kilburn?
We’re excited to see how residents from diverse backgrounds engage with the work, and how spontaneous interactions between strangers might form new connections. We’re also looking forward to experiencing the festival’s wider programme and seeing Kilburn illuminated through a diversity of artistic voices.
One word to describe Light Up Kilburn?
Enlightening!
