Due to weather conditions, the Esplanade Tranquille skating rink is currently closed.
LUMINO PRO 2026, the 2ⁿᵈ edition of the International Winter Creativity Forum
The Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, in collaboration with Quartier des Spectacles International, presents the second edition of LUMINO PRO. Held from February 25 to 27, 2026, as part of the 16ᵗʰ edition of LUMINO, this three-day professional gathering brought together industry stakeholders for conferences, panels, and workshops aimed at exploring strategies to make winter a true cultural season and a driver of urban development.
Winter: A Strategic Season for Public Spaces
Building on the discussions initiated during the first edition, LUMINO PRO 2026 explored the role of winter as a catalyst for urban transformation. This idea guided all of the forum’s discussions, highlighting a paradigm shift led by cities such as Montreal, Helsinki, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Minneapolis.
Over three days, LUMINO PRO offered a high-caliber program centered on conferences, panels, case studies, hands-on workshops, creative showcases, and professional networking sessions. These peer-to-peer exchanges, combined with networking activities, allowed participants to observe firsthand the tangible benefits of an ambitious winter program.
Bringing together more than 160 participants, including some 30 international guests, this edition gathered in Montreal municipal decision-makers, public space managers, presenters, programmers, and creative studios from Quebec, Canada, the United States, and Europe, all united by a common goal: to make winter a driving force for cultural, economic and regional appeal.
Held in the heart of the Quartier des Spectacles, renowned for its ability to transform the cold into a collective experience, LUMINO PRO offers a unique immersion in a fully animated winter neighborhood.
37 Voices to Reinvent Winter
LUMINO PRO brought together 37 speakers who shared their experiences and reflected on how winter can become a driver of cultural, economic and regional appeal. Hailing from Finland, Norway, France, the United States and eight cities across Quebec and Canada, each speaker brings a unique background and winter-focused projects to the table.
Through lectures, panels, and case studies, these experts, urban planners, designers, programmers, public space managers, and creators, shared concrete strategies for transforming winter into a driver of appeal.
From their diverse perspectives, common principles emerged: designing projects rooted in the identity of the places, structuring networks of facilities on a city-wide scale, and creating comprehensive experiences that combine cultural programming, urban design, and winter hospitality. The discussions also highlighted the importance of international collaboration, the pooling of expertise, and the measurement of impacts to support the long-term development of initiatives.
A consensus emerges from these discussions: winter is no longer a constraint, but a strategic opportunity. Driven by the expertise and innovation of the speakers, these reflections contribute to a lasting redefinition of how cities inhabit and activate their public spaces during the cold season.
A professional showcase for sharing expertise
LUMINO PRO also offers a unique opportunity to facilitate meetings between municipalities, event organizers, and producers of winter experiences. This showcase of Montreal’s expertise brought together 15 experience producers for professional meetings focused on knowledge sharing. The goal is to generate concrete collaborations, foster the development of new initiatives, and position the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership and QDSinternational as leading partners in the planning and activation of public spaces during the winter. By bringing together an international network of winter cities, LUMINO PRO affirms its role as a strategic platform where expertise, urban innovation, and creativity converge in Montreal.
As part of this initiative, the workshop “Even in Winter,” facilitated by Rues Principales, brought together some twenty participants to discuss the role of winter in the planning of community centers. The discussions helped reposition winter as a key driver of urban development by exploring concrete principles related to microclimates, sunlight, the integration of art and street furniture, and the creation of living spaces adapted to the season.
More than just conferences: ideas and a community
LUMINO PRO is committed to fostering fruitful collaborations and sparking innovative ideas in lighting design and winter entertainment. Guests had the opportunity to draw inspiration from cultural organizations such as Moment Factory (AURA), McCord Museum, OASIS Immersion, Place des Arts and Les 7 Doigts. A community of practice and shared interest also appears to be emerging.
Tours of the light installations presented as part of the 16th edition of LUMINO, in the Quartier des Spectacles and neighboring neighborhoods, offered a hands-on opportunity to discover the projects and artistic approaches deployed in public spaces. Networking opportunities and professional meetings, including a roundtable at the Society for Arts and Technology [SAT], also punctuated the program, fostering exchanges among peers and the development of lasting collaborations.
LUMINO PRO 2026: Key Figures
ABOUT LUMINO
Initiated and produced by the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, the LUMINO event offers an original, captivating and participatory winter experience from November to March. Its light and sound installations in public spaces transform the Quartier and the wider downtown core into a vast open-air museum. The event, which has become a staple of winter in Montreal, showcases local creativity on the international stage, and its unique experience has inspired cultural districts and light festivals around the world. Several works are now on display in other cultural districts across the globe thanks to Quartier des Spectacles International.
ABOUT QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES PARTNERSHIP
The Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, founded in 2003, is a non-profit organization with more than 85 members active in the district. It is responsible for animating the Quartier des Spectacles by programming cultural activities, managing and animating public spaces, providing distinctive illumination and promoting the Quartier as a must-visit cultural destination. The Partnership benefits from the support of the Ville de Montréal.
ABOUT QUARTIER DES SPECTACLES INTERNATIONAL
QDSinternational is a not-for-profit organization that produces and distributes participatory installations for public spaces in collaboration with creative partners, co-producers and exhibitors around the world. An affiliate of the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership, QDSinternational benefits from a competence acquired over many years, thanks to the numerous works it has commissioned for North America’s largest cultural district, bringing inspiration to thousands of visitors. The organization’s expertise is reflected in its state-of-the-art processes for the design and production of robust, safe installations suitable for all ages and designed to travel anywhere in the world and in any season.
The partners for the second edition of LUMINO PRO: DoubleTree by Hilton, Caisse de la Culture de Desjardins, Ville de Montréal, SODEC – Société de développement des entreprises culturelles, QDSinternational and the Quartier des Spectacles Partnership.
