• Swindon & Wiltshire Culture
• Wednesday September 10 2025

Sun to shine on Bristol’s new festival of tech, creativity and culture

A massive installation of the sun by Bristol artist Luke Jerram will appear in the city for the first time as part of the festival of tech, creativity and culture BTF+.

Hosted in Bristol Cathedral, which has previously shown Luke’s earth installation, Gaia, Helios will first be available to view on Monday 6, Tuesday 7, and Wednesday 8 October, when the cathedral will transform after dark into an immersive, otherworldly space.

Measuring seven metres in diameter, the installation features 72dpi detailed imagery of the sun’s surface.

At an approximate scale of 1:200 million, each centimetre of the internally lit spherical sculpture represents 2000km of the sun’s surface.

Helios is part of the BTF+’s ‘Live’ track of immersive performances, music and cultural moments.

BTF+ is a groundbreaking new festival set to transform Bristol into an international beacon for tech, creativity and culture.

The festival is curated by the team at techSPARK and will run from October 6-11 in and around the Old City, offering an accessible and impactful experience for founders, technologists, creatives, investors, culture-makers, tech enthusiasts and lovers of creativity.

The Helios installation is a fusion of solar imagery and sunlight, and features a specially created surround sound composition by Duncan Speakman and Sarah Anderson.

It is dangerous to look at the sun directly as it can damage our eyesight, so Helios provides a safe opportunity for the public to get up close to, and inspect, its extraordinarily detailed surface, including sunspots, spicules and filaments.

The sculpture also illustrates the source of the solar flares which caused the northern lights to be visible from the UK last year.

“It’s so exciting to present my new artwork at Bristol Cathedral for BTF+. I spent all last winter perfecting the sun’s internal rippling light and so it’s great to now be able to present this new artwork in my home city,” said Luke.

In addition to this incredible art installation, BTF+ promises bold keynotes and panels alongside breakthrough tech demonstrations in a wide variety of venues, ranging from intimate settings to prestigious locations, including Bristol Beacon, The Old Vic and Bristol Cathedral.

An evolution of the much-loved Bristol Technology Festival and inspired by the region’s strengths around world-class academia, pioneering businesses and a creative community, BTF+ is designed for start-ups, scale-ups, creators, storytellers, founders, technologists and anyone with curiosity about what’s next.

Ben Shorrock, co-founder of BTF+, said: “BTF+ embodies everything that makes our city and wider region special – the collision of technology, creativity and culture – and Helios could not be a finer embodiment.

“To have the opportunity to introduce an art installation of this magnitude to the city for the first time and be able to present it in such iconic surroundings, brings tangible momentum to the BTF+ vision.”

BTF+ is being delivered through a partnership between not-for-profit techSPARK, Bristol Creative Industries, MyWorld, and long-time Bristol Technology Festival supporter Ghyston.

Tickets for BTF+ are available now. To register, discover more about the festival or to become part of it, head to: https://techspark.co/btfplus/

The Very Revd Dr Mandy Ford, Dean of Bristol, said: “This artwork gives us the opportunity for awe and wonder as we encounter our nearest star, with all its mystery and beauty. It is an opportunity to reflect that the sun provides the light that gives growth to plants and thus life to all the earth’s myriad creatures.”

Helios will be on display at the cathedral throughout October. For tickets, visit https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/btf-luke-jerrams-helios-at-bristol-cathedral-tickets-1658712958109

Pictured: Helios during its debut at Bath Assembly Rooms (c) National Trust Images, James Dobson