Pupils from Soho Parish Primary School are the magic behind making the Soho Christmas lights happen this year.
The lights feature shooting stars, mince pies, a reindeer, a snowman, and even a festive crab, sprinkling some more Christmas spirit onto the streets of central London.
The lights are part of a collaboration between Architecture for Kids and the school's Soho Kids Xmas Lights project. This year saw 130 pupils submit designs, of which 14 were chosen to join the 35 from the previous year. It is the project's third annual edition.
They also referenced themes of "lighting, identity of place and fashion".
The winning festive designs included a patterned Christmas bauble by six-year-old Emberly, and a reindeer in a Christmas hat by Vesper.
The Soho Parish children, all aged five to 11, hand-drew their masterpieces, researching the architecture and heritage of the area to inspire their designs. They even had the opportunity to visit the Andy Warhol: The Textiles exhibition at London's Fashion and Textile Museum.
The designs were then judged by a committee of residents and businesses. Both students won awards for their outstanding design works from the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), with the Lighting Industry Association (LIA) selecting some of the pupils’ designs to receive an award.
The two chosen children described the experience of having their work exhibited as "amazing and really nice".
The project was designed by Antonio Capelao, architect and co-founding director of Architecture for Kids, and was co-produced with Hannah Peaty, assistant headteacher at Soho Parish. Other local businesses also assisted.
The light installations will be available to see in Soho until January 7, 2024.
