Art and design festival Lumiere London is casting the capital’s architecture in a new light.

The four-night spectacle – which kicked off last night – features 30 exhibits across the city, including in Piccadilly, Trafalgar Square and King’s Cross.

‘Leading international artists working with light will engage with the urban landscape and architecture to create a place where strange and wonderful things happen,’ said Helen Marriage, the festival curator and director of creative production company Artichoke. ‘People will see the city with new eyes.’

At Westminster Abbey, French artist Patrice Warrener has set the church’s 18th-century western towers aglow using a ‘chromolithe’ technique.

On the façade of the BAFTA building in Piccadilly, Newcastle-based studio Novak has projected Technicolor light sculptures of famous British actors and directors, including Idris Elba, Steve McQueen and Julie Walters. A soundtrack by composer Ed Carter accompanies the work.

‘It’s a miserable time of year. Christmas and New Year celebrations are over,’ added Marriage. ‘This is a free festival that will bring people onto the streets.’

Over in King’s Cross, Portuguese studio Ocubo has created an animation across the front of the Granary Building. Meanwhile, Swedish production company Floating Pictures has come up with an interactive installation in Pancras Square, where the public can use their smartphones to ‘paint’ their surroundings.

Lumiere London runs until 17 January.