FESTIVAL 25. AURORA.
24-26 October 2025.
Aurora will be the sixth edition of the Festival.
Inspired by nature’s Northern Lights that reached Kent last year, Aurora is a celebration of the wonderment of changing colour, particle energy and ancient ancestry. As Electric Medway turns 10, the Festival is spotlighting digital work made by local artists and groups who see the world differently, including the diverse perspectives of young people.
Suitable for families. Free entry. Booking required for some events.
Download the Programme guide.
Aurora will be the sixth edition of the Festival.
Inspired by nature’s Northern Lights that reached Kent last year, Aurora is a celebration of the wonderment of changing colour, particle energy and ancient ancestry. As Electric Medway turns 10, the Festival is spotlighting digital work made by local artists and groups who see the world differently, including the diverse perspectives of young people.
Suitable for families. Free entry. Booking required for some events.
Download the Programme guide.
24 October 2025,
10am-4pm at various locations.
Forest Keep.
By Electric Medway feat. Square Pegs Arts. Come and play test a futuristic story at Rochester Castle
Gardens in augmented reality where you choose the outcome. Developed by John Whall and Adam Glen with young people at our Young Hack digital camps and production workshops, and with students from Canterbury Christ Church University.
Rochester Castle, Castle Gardens, Rochester ME1 1SW.
what3words location: ///data.burns.digit
Bookable slots here. Running all day, 10am-4pm.
We will provide a limited number of tablet devices, headphones and access to WiFi. You may wish to bring your phone or tablet device and headphones instead. Your guide will take you through the story. Please allow 30 minutes for your experience.
Download the Forest Keep Access Guide.
Gardens in augmented reality where you choose the outcome. Developed by John Whall and Adam Glen with young people at our Young Hack digital camps and production workshops, and with students from Canterbury Christ Church University.
Rochester Castle, Castle Gardens, Rochester ME1 1SW.
what3words location: ///data.burns.digit
Bookable slots here. Running all day, 10am-4pm.
We will provide a limited number of tablet devices, headphones and access to WiFi. You may wish to bring your phone or tablet device and headphones instead. Your guide will take you through the story. Please allow 30 minutes for your experience.
Download the Forest Keep Access Guide.
New Chronicles of Mudfog.By House of Stars. New Chronicles of Mudfog is an augmented reality experience along Chatham High Street, inspired by Charles Dickens’ Mudfog Papers.
2pm-3pm, Nadia Perrotta, Art Director of House of Stars will be onsite for special artist introduction and Q&A. Bring your phone or device. 4G/5G Internet connection required. Scan the QR code onsite. Meeting House Lane, Chatham, ME4 4TT. what3words location: ///jump.strong.rally The project links the stories of people who migrated to Chatham during the Industrial Revolution and Victorian era—helping to shape the town’s growth—with the experiences of young people from migrant families living in Chatham today. Their illustrations bring these historical figures back to life through AR, celebrating the shared spirit of movement, work, and belonging that defines the town. The work has been developed by young people from House of Stars, Victory Academy, and New Horizon Primary School, with technical support from Electric Medway. |
Aurora Mythology.Until 30 October. Glow art window exhibition by participants and Xtina Lamb, displayed at Intra Arts, Rochester.
Intra Arts, 337-341 High St, Rochester ME1 1DA. what3words location: ///clues.stuff.poet |
25-26 October 2025,
10am-4pm at Sun Pier House, Chatham.
Sun Pier House, Medway St, Chatham ME4 4HF.
what3words location: ///keys.enable.prep
what3words location: ///keys.enable.prep
Highway to Infinity.
By Symoné. You are invited to interactive installation, Highway to Infinity, a philosophical game and parallel story to Nullspace Motel. A single-player interactive narrative, Highway to Infinity holds up a mirror to the audience’s own unconscious mind, questioning preconceived ideas around identity, memory and the very fabric of reality. Glowing stacks of retro TVs and pulsing immersive sound delivered via headphones turn the experience inward. What happens when the screen looks back at you?
Bookable slots here. Some drop-ins available on the day.
Headphones will be provided. Please allow 25 minutes for your experience.
Bookable slots here. Some drop-ins available on the day.
Headphones will be provided. Please allow 25 minutes for your experience.
Aurora Box.By Andy Hurst. Andy is a lecturer at Canterbury Christ Church University engaging in practice research that centres on the use of light and haze in live performance and installation work. Aurora Box is a work-in-progress interactive installation using motion tracking and projected light, resulting in an aurora-like spectacle.
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Hopes for Our Future Environment.Animations by participants with Hannah Whittaker, Medway Climate Change and Electric Medway.
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Men in Tech.Music, game design and 3D models by participants with
Electric Medway, Richard Lightman and Medway Men in Sheds. |
Wild Polyphonies (Saturday).By Jane Pitt. Wild Polyphonies multi speaker immersive audio installation loops and layers wordless vocals to ‘sing the landscape’; immersing our ears and connecting us to our landscape and imagination with sonic phrases that evoke the texture, colour, volume, space and shifts of our polyphonic world.
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Puffing and Wooling (Saturday).
By Tilley and Del. Enter the calming and nurturing space, full of cosy wonder that is Puffing & Wooling. A space filled with inclusivity and acceptance, warm and welcoming vibes, where families can press pause on life, breathe, draw live wall projections on iPads, and hear ambient sound in blissful surroundings. Led and curated by neurodiverse artists Tilley and Del.
Timed performances throughout the day. |
Prints of Hope.
Prints of Hope is a two-part artwork created by Electric Medway and the community, exploring pride, hope and shared creativity.
Light-up lithophane - one part takes the form of a light-up lithophane, a thin 3D-printed panel that reveals images only when illuminated from behind. Once popular in the 19th century, lithophanes transformed delicate carvings into glowing pictures, and here the process is reimagined through contemporary digital design. Its surface carries images and forms drawn from community workshops run by Electric Medway, where participants sketched and modelled “something or someone you are proud of.” When lit, the lithophane becomes a luminous tapestry of personal stories, from abstract shapes of growing confidence to the pets that bring warmth, comfort, and companionship.
Suspended mobile - alongside this intimate work, the original 3D models have been enlarged and reimagined as a suspended mobile.
Light-up lithophane - one part takes the form of a light-up lithophane, a thin 3D-printed panel that reveals images only when illuminated from behind. Once popular in the 19th century, lithophanes transformed delicate carvings into glowing pictures, and here the process is reimagined through contemporary digital design. Its surface carries images and forms drawn from community workshops run by Electric Medway, where participants sketched and modelled “something or someone you are proud of.” When lit, the lithophane becomes a luminous tapestry of personal stories, from abstract shapes of growing confidence to the pets that bring warmth, comfort, and companionship.
Suspended mobile - alongside this intimate work, the original 3D models have been enlarged and reimagined as a suspended mobile.
Medway FighterBy Jon Schwochert. Come and play test Medway Fighter, a new game being co-created with Medway residents, including young people. Currently a prototype, your feedback will help Jon develop the game further and put some of your ideas into practice.
The game takes inspiration from Street Fighter and historical Medway figures, where players will be immersed in levels created in retro pixel art. Medway Fighter is also a HE research project initiated by Jon in collaboration with Electric Medway, exploring how technology can be used for engagement. Look out for future opportunities for the public to create characters, suggest ideas for the narrative, and to learn about game design. |
NINE (Sunday).By Temple of Kulture. NINE: The Rebirth of a Mother is a unique, immersive theatre experience created by black-led theatre company Temple of Kulture.
A journey through motherhood, memory and mental, health experience a segment of NINE that features performance with projection mapping. This is not just theatre. This is healing in motion. Timed performances throughout the day. |
Three Kinds of Dawn.By Ben Sammon. An audiovisual response to Sonaura's song 'Three Kinds of Dawn' from the album Noumena, this piece was created by combining manual and automated audio-reactive processes, feeding digitally produced visuals through circuit bent analogue video equipment. The artwork is a mediation on nostalgia, embracing imperfection and the heavily saturated colours of rose tinted memories.
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About the Festival.
Born during lockdown in 2020 as a hybrid-online event, Electric Medway Festival has evolved outdoors to become a popular feature on Medway's cultural calendar.
The Festival is produced by Electric Medway, and is now it's 6th year. The first edition was conceived by Co-Founders Kevin Grist and Janet Moore, Community Director with initial support from Paul Cowell, Head of Culture, Libraries and Heritage at Medway Council.
Since 2020, it has attracted partnership funding from Arts Council England, Medway Council, Kent County Council, Hi3 Network, Creative Estuary, Kent Community Foundation, Tesco Bags of Help, Arnold Clark Community Fund, Way of Life, Ideas Test, The Old High Street Intra, MSL Projects, Screen South and donations from individuals and community support in-kind. It has reached over 25,000 audiences and provided over 125 young people from working-class backgrounds aged 18-30 with valuable work experience and industry placements, alongside creative industry skills training.
Ranging from VR and projected light, to electronic music and AI, events and workshops are put on in everyday spaces including libraries, shopping centres, parks, cafes and even lamp posts.
The Festival is best known for commissioning innovative works by local artists and young people, boldly telling stories from Medway's neighbourhoods and capturing the unique DIY spirit of the area.
Acknowledgements:
Electric Medway Festival: Aurora is supported with funding from Arts Council England, Medway Council, Medway Council UK Shared Prosperity Fund, Colyer Fergusson Charitable Trust, Henry Smith Foundation, NHS Kent and Medway, Kent Council Council and Baring Foundation. With partner support from Artspoint, Square Pegs Arts, Sun Pier House, Intra Arts, Rochester Castle, House of Stars, Medway Men in Sheds, Medway Climate Change and Canterbury Christ Church University.
The Festival is produced by Electric Medway, and is now it's 6th year. The first edition was conceived by Co-Founders Kevin Grist and Janet Moore, Community Director with initial support from Paul Cowell, Head of Culture, Libraries and Heritage at Medway Council.
Since 2020, it has attracted partnership funding from Arts Council England, Medway Council, Kent County Council, Hi3 Network, Creative Estuary, Kent Community Foundation, Tesco Bags of Help, Arnold Clark Community Fund, Way of Life, Ideas Test, The Old High Street Intra, MSL Projects, Screen South and donations from individuals and community support in-kind. It has reached over 25,000 audiences and provided over 125 young people from working-class backgrounds aged 18-30 with valuable work experience and industry placements, alongside creative industry skills training.
Ranging from VR and projected light, to electronic music and AI, events and workshops are put on in everyday spaces including libraries, shopping centres, parks, cafes and even lamp posts.
The Festival is best known for commissioning innovative works by local artists and young people, boldly telling stories from Medway's neighbourhoods and capturing the unique DIY spirit of the area.
Acknowledgements:
Electric Medway Festival: Aurora is supported with funding from Arts Council England, Medway Council, Medway Council UK Shared Prosperity Fund, Colyer Fergusson Charitable Trust, Henry Smith Foundation, NHS Kent and Medway, Kent Council Council and Baring Foundation. With partner support from Artspoint, Square Pegs Arts, Sun Pier House, Intra Arts, Rochester Castle, House of Stars, Medway Men in Sheds, Medway Climate Change and Canterbury Christ Church University.
