More than 6000 people descended on Kaikohe over four nights last week to take part in Bling Bling Toi Marama, a festival of light celebrating Matariki and children's creativity.
The event featured a night market with warming kai and live music on the old Kaikohe Hotel site, but the real drawcard was a fantastical ''light cave'' packed with glow-in-the-dark art made by 700 children from a dozen Mid North schools.
Toi Ngāpuhi, senior citizens from the Kaikohe branch of Age Well, and several hundred children taking part in weekend activities at Auckland Art Gallery Toi O Tāmaki also contributed artworks.
The event, which wrapped up on Saturday night, was organised by Ākau design studio and Kaikohekohe Konnex to "bring light to the community".
Ākau director Ana Heremaia said children taking part were given a wero (challenge) to create a piece of light art on the theme of Te Waonui a Tāne (the realm of Tāne, god of the forest).