Barnsley Museums Commission - Barnsley Bright Nights 2026

Barnsley Museums are looking for an artist/s who works with light, projection mapping, sound and immersive installations to bring to life Barnsley Town Hall and Experience Barnsley Museum at Barnsley Bright Nights 2026.

At a glance:

A commission to create an external light and projection artwork on Barnsley Town Hall and an internal immersive experience, inspired by the current Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt exhibition in Experience Barnsley Museum (located inside Barnsley Town Hall).

The installations will form Barnsley Museums' contribution to Barnsley Bright Nights
on Fri 20 and Sat 21 November 2026. There are three commission options:

1.Both external Town Hall projection and an internal installation experience with a total
combined commission budget of up to £23,000
2.External Town Hall light/projection only with a commission budget of up to £15,000
3.Internal immersive experience in Experience Barnsley only, with a commission budget
of up to £8000 (All budgets inclusive of fee, planning, workshops, expenses, evaluation
and exclusive of VAT)

Application deadline: Mon 7 September 2026 at 10am
Schedule: Mon 7 September - Sun 22 November 2026

This commission is an opportunity to create a new light and sound work for Barnsley Museums, which will be bespoke and aims to illuminate and transform the exterior of the Town Hall and inside Experience Barnsley Museum.
It will need to create a cohesive visitor journey, connecting the public realm with the museum interior and encouraging audiences to explore both spaces as part of a single experience. The project will also contribute to the final promotional phase of the Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt exhibition, linking global narratives to local stories.

Inspired by the Cleopatra and the Queens of Egypt exhibition and Barnsley’s powerful women, the creative output should explore identity, power and legacy, drawing connections between ancient and contemporary stories. Through this commission the Creatives / Creative Collaborators will also embed some community engagement opportunities by working with community groups and young people to co-create elements of the project. Barnsley Museum’s community team will identify, connect and support engagement with community groups to develop content for the final piece.

The commissioned idea will be a key part of Barnsley Bright Nights festival on Friday 20 and Saturday 21 of November and will be displayed externally on the Town Hall as well as being experienced within the building in Experience Barnsley Museum.

About Barnsley's Bright Nights

Barnsley Bright Nights is South Yorkshire’s biggest free annual light art festival, attracting live audiences of over 20,000 people. Started in 2018, the two-day festival is now an established highlight of Barnsley’s town centre cultural events programme, featuring co-curated artworks, installations and performances across the thriving town centre.

Barnsley Bright Nights 2026 will use the creative theme of ‘Between Earth and Sky’ to shine a light on our communities and inspire creativity through high-quality art. The festival will also showcase the new Yorkshire Roses
light sculptures and offer opportunities for new artists to celebrate Barnsley being named the UK’s first Tech Town. Barnsley Bright Nights is delivered by Barnsley Council’s award-winning Arts & Events team and is supported by Arts Council England, The Seam Digital Campus, The Glass Works, Barnsley College, Visit Barnsley, Barnsley Museums, Barnsley Libraries, Barnsley Civic and Barnsley Museums & Heritage Trust.

Scope of Commission 

This commission requires two areas of creation – an external light artwork / projection on to one side of Barnsley Town Hall and an internal interactive experience within the Town Hall building and Experience Barnsley Museum.
Artists/creatives are welcome to apply for both aspects or select either/or if preferred.

If choosing to apply for a single element, there will be a requirement to work collaboratively with other commissioned artists/creatives. Community engagement and elements of co-creation will be required across both the external and internal creations and Barnsley Museums' community team will identify, connect and support engagement with community groups to develop final content.

How to apply

To apply please email project proposal to experiencebarnsley@barnsley.gov.uk by Monday 7 September at 9am.

Project proposals can be sent in any format, such as:
A PDF presentation deck (maximum 10 slides)
A written proposal with supporting images (maximum 1,500 words)
A video application (maximum 5 minutes in length)
Please see Appendix 1 – Full Commission Document for full
shortlisting criteria and what to include in your proposal.

Accessibility is important to us. If you require any support or reasonable adjustments during the application process, please do not hesitate to get in touch. If you have any questions or would like an informal chat before submitting your application, please contact experiencebarnsley@barnsley.gov.uk

Next Steps & Key Dates

The team will score your commission based on the content of your proposal and aim to respond to all applicants w/c 7 September 2026.