Kiwi sisters light up Sydney art festival

Alexandra and Julia Heaney are hoping the Sydney exposure will lead to more international opportunities. Photo / Supplied

Twin visual artists have three light and sculpture installations on show.

Kiwi twin sisters have been celebrated as being among the highlights of a major Australian art festival, with three light and sculpture installations on show at Vivid Sydney.

Aucklanders Alexandra and Julia Heaney, 26, are the only New Zealanders to make the cut at the festival, which runs for three weeks and features works by 60 artists from around the world.

The pair submitted three proposals to the selection committee, in the hope one would be chosen. Instead, all three were selected out of hundreds of proposals.

Spectators are queuing each night to see the Auckland twins' Internal Galaxy light installation. Photo / Supplied

"It was huge, so much work," says Alexandra. Adds Julia: "We were pretty lucky to get all three in."

Vivid Light curator Anthony Bastic says the twins' work stood out as stunning displays of light and colour.

"They are very talented individuals and to create three different, engaging and beautiful pieces of work for the one festival is very impressive," he says.

The sisters spent a week in Sydney setting up their installations, which are on display around the central city.

"A lot of the artistic part comes in the programming of the lights," explains Alexandra. "You make the installation - that's kind of the canvas - then you programme it."

Adds Julia: "It's almost like doing two pieces together."

The most complex of their works, Internal Galaxy, is also proving the most popular, with queues forming each night to view the installation.

Spectators are queuing each night to see the Auckland twins' Internal Galaxy light installation. Photo / Supplied

"It's a mirrored room inside a container. It's really cool actually," says Julia.

Says Alexandra: "We're working with mirror and glass - and it's very hard to work with glass.

Julia laughs. "You end up with lots of smashed panels and every time you smash a panel you're like, 'There goes $800,' she says.

"We've smashed so much glass. We're going to have the worst luck."

Bastic describes the piece as "like entering a jewellery box. It is pure magic!"

That magic has spurred Vivid organisers to discuss a return by the twins next year to create an even bigger-scale project.

The sisters are also hopeful the event will lead to more international opportunities.

"A lot of international festival organisers come over to see this," says Alexandra.

"It's a huge gateway to the rest of the world."