Naostage’s K SYSTEM tracking platform was deployed at this summer’s Manchester International Festival 2025 to create a dynamic spotlight experience in an artwork by British artist Ryan Gander, part of a football-themed group exhibition led by former Spain international Juan Mata.
The installation, Privileges of Hindsight 2025, formed part of Football City, Art United, a collaborative show pairing artists with football legends including Eric Cantona, Ella Toone and Edgar Davids. Conceived by Mata, the exhibition was staged at Factory International in Manchester as part of the biennial festival, which showcases new commissions across visual and performing arts.
Naostage’s technology enabled a spotlight to track visitors automatically as they moved through the gallery, without requiring them to wear beacons or devices. Two KAPTA sensors covered the space, while the system’s KRATOS software handled real-time positional data, allowing the light to lock onto individuals, switch between them, and respond to multiple people in the room.
Early testing took place at Ryan Gander Studio in 2023, helping the team fine-tune the conditional logic and behaviour of the spotlight before public installation. Naostage says the setup was designed to be intuitive, adaptable, and as unobtrusive as possible, giving the impression of a seamless, responsive artwork.
Ryan Gander, artist, said: “The spotlight is a metaphor, obviously – the gaze of the crowd. It follows you and transfers from one person to another, just like celebrity, attention or blame. But what’s important is how simple and beautiful the effect feels. It’s powered by quite sophisticated tracking technology, but the audience doesn’t see that – they just feel it.”
Naostage’s UK distributor, 2B Heard, supported the installation on site. The flexibility of the system allowed the artwork to operate in a plug-and-play fashion across the gallery’s open layout, bringing a theatrical and immersive quality to the space, according to Naostage.
Alexis Reymond, chief strategy officer at Naostage, added: “The public reaction has been incredible. Visitors were delighted and often amused to realise they were being followed by the spotlight, bringing a sense of wonder and engagement to the gallery experience.”
