![London's bridges](https://thespaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/From-left-to-right-London-Bridge-Cannon-Street-Railway-Bridge-Southwark-Bridge-Millennium-Bridge-Blackfriars-Bridge-and-Blackfriars-Railway-Bridge-all-taken-from-the-Shard-FT.jpg)
Photography: Luke Hayes / Malcolm Reading Consultants
New London mayor Sadiq Khan has barely been in the job a month but is already looking to make his mark on the city.
His latest idea is to turn the 17 bridges along the River Thames into a permanent light installation, making it the world’s longest artwork on a river.
![Westminster Bridge](https://thespaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Westminster-Bridge-looking-north-from-The-Queen’s-Walk-and-with-the-Palace-of-Westminster-adjacent-to-its-north-bank.jpg)
Artists, designers, engineers and architects from around the world have been invited to create the expansive piece, dubbed The Illuminated River.
‘It will throw a spotlight on the river and its banks, and extend their daytime bustle and buzz into the darker hours, supporting London’s burgeoning night-time economy,’ said Khan. ‘A dazzling, free, outdoor art gallery, for Londoners and all of our visitors to enjoy.’
![Vauxhall Bridge](https://thespaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/Vauxhall-Bridge-from-Millbank-looking-southwest-towards-Battersea-Power-Station.jpg)
The aim of the artwork – which will go from Albert Bridge in the west to Tower Bridge in the east – is to promote use of the public realm along the riverbanks and bolster London’s night-time lifestyle.
A shortlist of entries will go on show in a public exhibition at the end of this year and a winner will be announced shortly after.