The Bathurst Winter Festival takes place every year during the July school holidays. One very chilly night a couple of weeks ago, I jumped right in to the experience, which is all about bringing light and joy to counterpoint the darkness and chill of winter.

The epicentre of the event was at McHattie Park, where illumination by strings of white and coloured lights, created on an eerie atmosphere.

Leached of colour by the lighting, the shapes of the leaves of ribbon grass and aspidistra are accentuated.

Bright blossoms featured in the laser light show.

Unseasonal blooming of daisies on the walls of the Cathedral of St Michael and St John

The effect of unfamiliar the lighting on Bathurst’s stately civic buildings and streetscapes- the Court House, Court House Lane, the Cathedral of St Michael & St John-was unsettling, and mesmerising!

Bathurst Court House

Places, well known by day, became eerie, and somewhat sinister.

Ferris wheel

People wandered quietly around, emerging from the shadows, passing by or quietly greeting friends, then moving off again into the darkness.

The ferris wheel, ice rink and house of mirrors provided an escape to the brighter lights.

Bright lights on the ice

Skating fun for all 

The darker side of the ice rink…spooky skate hire.

The familiar plants of the Fernery looked very different by night, transformed by coloured lighting and inhabited by strange creatures.

The well-trodden pathways and park buildings didn’t look quite normal…

Strange life forms were observed inside the conservatory…

This government building looked very forbidding…

The vivid laser light show animated more bizarre nocturnal images.

It was a pleasure to find the beautiful stained glass windows of All Saints Anglican Cathedral.

This event satisfied the truly human desire for light in the darkness.