On the evening of Oct. 15, students from the Youth STEAM Initiative (YSI) brought light and celebration to the heart of Lexington with a breathtaking projection-mapping show for Diwali, the Festival of Lights. The team — led by Claire Liu, with Jiawei Liu and Stephen Yang as team members — combined art, history and technology to create a vivid display that transformed a historical building into a canvas of color and storytelling.
Earlier this year, YSI presented an outstanding projection-mapping performance for the LexLux Project in collaboration with the Munroe Center for the Arts and other local organizations. Their creativity and professionalism during that event impressed the community and earned them a new opportunity — this time, an invitation from the Town of Lexington to design a special light show for Diwali.
“This is a continuation of the LexLux Project from earlier this year in January. I am very glad that we got invited by the town to do this projection-mapping again for a different group of people for the celebration of Diwali,” said team leader Claire Liu. “I really hope that this project can inspire people to get to know this form of art and get engaged with Lexington’s local history.”
Behind the beauty of the show was careful teamwork and problem-solving. The students worked tirelessly to align the projections with the shape of the house, adjusting equipment throughout the night and even covering the projector each time a car passed to ensure everyone’s safety. Their dedication paid off, as the finished performance lit up the evening with creativity and community spirit.
Jiawei Liu expressed his excitement about connecting culture with technology:
“I am very grateful to have the opportunity to celebrate Diwali, the Festival of Lights, with the community in this new technological way.”
Stephen Yang added: “I really hope this project inspires other people to also pursue artistic skill and technology combined. I hope this light brightens the buildings of Lexington and also brightens the creativity and imagination of the community.”
The show received high praise from Cristina Burwell, Executive Director of the Munroe Center for the Arts, and Sandhya Iyer, Economic Development Director for the Town of Lexington, both of whom applauded the students’ effort and innovation in bringing cultures and communities together through technology and art.
This project reflected the mission of Youth STEAM Initiative: to inspire young people to explore the intersection of art, science and technology while celebrating cultural diversity. By partnering with the Indian-American community for Diwali, YSI once again demonstrated how innovation can strengthen connections across cultures and generations. Through light and imagination, the team reminded everyone that technology can do more than amaze — it can bring people together.