The City Shines Brighter Than Ever As Vivid Sydney 2026 Commences
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Full program and tickets available at www.vividsydney.com
SYDNEY, May 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sydney harbour and CBD has once again been reimagined as a vibrant city in colour as Vivid Sydney kicks off its 16th year. In a festival-first, there is no theme for artists and creators to work within, so visitors can expect to see unparalleled creativity across curated Light, Minds, Music, and Food events and experiences this year.
From today, festival-goers can experience more than 200 events over 23 nights that will ignite the senses, stimulate their minds, and tap into unexplored wonder, giving both locals and visitors a unique opportunity to experience Sydney in a whole new light.
This year's program is home to more than 80% free events across both daytime and evening, a condensed 6.5km light walk with 43 installations, projections and large-scale public artworks, as well as the eagerly-awaited return of the drone show – this year, shining bright over Cockle Bay across 22 performances.
Additionally, the well-loved Vivid Fire Kitchen has a new home in Barangaroo reserve and boasts a significant lineup of culinary heavyweights, while Vivid Minds (formally Ideas) delivers world-class conversations and performances from some of the leading creative minds globally.
Vivid Sydney Festival Director Brett Sheehy AO said, "This year marks the start of an exciting evolution of Vivid Sydney. We've expanded the program across all pillars and have opened up the brief for artists and removed the creative limitations of needing to centre around one key theme.
"Visitors can expect a more immersive and interactive experience that will encourage them to explore new locations, unexpected installations, and spend more time enjoying the festival – both after dark and during the day.
"We've gone back to the core of what Vivid Sydney is all about which is tapping into creativity, and through this, there's this incredible platform to showcase leading Australian talent as well as a chance to bring legendary international talent to the Sydney landscape too."
Vivid Sydney Partners
Returning as Major Partners for 2026 are Kia and Samsung Electronics Australia.
Kia returns in its 5th consecutive year as a Major Partner and will display Kia Refraction in Bligh & Barney Reserve.
Samsung will activate with an immersive and interactive sculptural installation, Sky Portal Studio in First Fleet Park for its 5th year as a Partner.
Joining the Major Partners for 2026 is IREN – proud sponsor of 'Star-Bound: Vivid Sydney Drone Show'.
Joining as an Official Partner for 2026 is Lilly Australia. Celebrating its 150th Anniversary, Lilly will be presenting a panel as part of Vivid Minds titled A New Horizon of Health.
Uber also joins them as an Official Partner with dedicated pickup and dropoff zones across the footprint.
Dine Out with Uber Eats will also be the presenting partner of the Food for Thought Stage in the Vivid Fire Kitchen.
The festival's Charity Partner for 2026 is Foodbank NSW & ACT who will be at Tumbalong Park with their interactive installation called Foodbank Truck Packer.
Vivid Sydney runs from Friday 22 May to Saturday 13 June. For more information visit vividsydney.com.
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