The Iluminado experience is bigger and more immersive than before.

Agata Popęda here. For the last few years, the Monterey Museum of Art has been celebrating the holiday season with the Iluminado experience which typically displays a heavily illuminated, interactive exhibit at its core.

This year, they’ve outdone themselves—thanks to a collaboration between artists-in-residence, photographer Joe Ramos and multimedia artists Hanif Wondir and Domini Anne. Don’t miss the opening this Friday, Dec. 5 or come Saturday and Sunday to enjoy the immersive experience with the artists on site.

“Iluminado is really a culmination of the museum's activities for the year and a way to thank the community for their ongoing support,” says museum spokesperson Laurie Iwami. “Hanif and Domini's installation will be very different from years’ past and we're looking forward to what they have built collaborating with local photographer Joe Ramos.”

I had a chance to glance behind the scenes to see a bit of Wondir and Anne’s process—bits and pieces that will eventually transform into multiple “stations” of experience during Iluminado, starting with a photo booth and ending with a “wind wall” that equips black and white photography with movement and sound. One thing I can say for sure: The audience will see itself reflected—literally and metaphorically—while touring the exhibit. The addition of lights, sensors and animation make for a unique experience. 

Wondir and Anne’s partnership is a decade-long exploration of what it means to create unified artistic experiences, formed over years of multidisciplinary fashion shows and performance art.

Ramos was raised in the Harden Labor Camp south of Soledad. He studied photojournalism at Hartnell College, then got into fine art photography as a student at the San Francisco Art Institute. Last year, the museum showed an exhibit of his black-and-white photographs, featuring faces and places of significance to him over the past 56 years.

The Iluminado experience will remain accessible—free—throughout the month of December—maybe longer, depending on the community’s interest. For all the details regarding the project, visit the museum’s website.