Commercial Street illuminated in permanent new art feature in downtown Nanaimo

Commercial Street illuminated in permanent new art feature in downtown Nanaimo

Published 7:30 pm Saturday, December 13, 2025

A permanent art exhibit is illuminating downtown Nanaimo’s sidewalks.

‘Sensing Nanaimo’ is a series of projected images by Nanaimo artist Amy Pye.

The designs, created in black and white, feature light-projected circular images that “celebrate Nanaimo through an expanded lens of human sensation, moving beyond the traditional five senses to embrace 10: sight, sound, taste, touch, smell, balance, movement, temperature, direction and intuition,” a City of Nanaimo press release noted.

The art installation can be viewed after dark along Commercial Street on either side of Bastion Street and will remain as part of a permanent series of art projections integrated into Design Commercial – Downtown Re-imagined as part of a “growing collection of creative enhancements transforming Nanaimo’s public spaces,” the release noted.

“Public art has the power to change how we move through our city. Through Sensing Nanaimo, I aimed to create a series of small but meaningful moments, visual cues that encourage reflection, spark joy and deepen our connection to the places we share,” Pye said in the release.

Jaime-Brett Sine, City of Nanaimo culture coordinator, added in the release that the unique public art project brings together light, art, and community.