SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) — San Francisco’s giant lasers are back. This time, 12 laser beams will light up the city nightly in celebration of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) 2023 Summit.
Organizers with arts nonprofit Illuminate and the Civic Joy Fund said beaming lasers will shine along Market Street from sunset to sunrise, November 13-16.
The lasers will feature a never-before-seen array to showcase San Francisco, signify unity between cooperating nations, and impress a global audience.
Dubbed “Illuminate San Francisco,” lasers will emit a “nightly canopy of light and joy above Market Street – the City’s civic spine,” organizers wrote.
Lasers will emanate from Harry Bridges Plaza in front of the Ferry Building and beam at a 3-degree angle over Market Street, just clearing the top of Twin Peaks.
“We look forward to helping San Francisco shine when the eyes of the world are upon us,” said
Ben Davis, Illuminate’s founder. “Especially with international media in town, sending images to the more than 3 billion people of the APEC nations.”
Due to increasing security costs, APEC planners were forced to cut funding for the planned laser installation. However, Illuminate proceeded independently and launched a last-minute crowdfunding effort to cover the $150,000 cost of bringing this four-night spectacle.
“This is the spirit of San Francisco,” said Manny Yekutiel , who co-founded the Civic Joy Fund
with Daniel Lurie.
World leaders from 21 countries — including U.S. President Joe Biden and President of China Xi Jinping — will be visiting San Francisco. The meeting will be the city’s biggest international event since it served as the backdrop to the founding of the United Nations in 1945.
“This is one of the truly great cities in the world,” Davis said.
Illuminate is a San Francisco-based arts nonprofit that created many large-scale public art installations, including The Golden Mile in Golden Gate Park and The Bay Lights. The Civic Joy Fund was launched earlier this year to restore vibrancy in the city and stimulate economic recovery.
