As of July 1, the city’s laneways will light up in an explosion of colour and sound as part of Ballarat’s Winterlude festival.

The first part of the project is Ballarat Laneways Lumieres, a project where 12 local artists have created light and sound installations throughout Alfred Deakin Place, Police Lane and Camp Street.

Attendees can expect to see stunning graffiti art, edgy explosions of colour and neon installations lighting up previously dark passageways, accompanied by music and sounds that are sure to send the winter chill running.

The second part of the project are two Laneways Live and Local free music concerts.

The events will be held July 15 and 16 at the Art Gallery Annexe, Alfred Deakin Place and will feature a range of musicians including Gareth Liddiard from The Drones, Gold Class, The Dead Salesmen Duo, Gabriella Cohen, Dewey and the Panel Beaters, Trucks and Trillionayers. The event on July 16 is an all-ages gig and is a drug, alcohol and smoke-free event.

Organiser Deborah Klein said the “brilliant colour and joyous sound” would chase away the winter blues.

“Created as interactive artworks, the Laneways Lumieres are a celebration of unique local talents that are positioning Ballarat as the cultural capital of regional Victoria,” Ms Klein said.

“Designed to illuminate and redefine perceptions of otherwise overlooked spaces in the CBD arts precinct, the Laneway Lumieres are an authentic expression of our sense of place.

“What better way to counter the seasonal doldrums than with an experience that sings of colour and movement and play?”

The light and sound installations will continue every night from dusk until July 17. The installations have been created by a range of local artists including Margie, Zlatko, George Balazic, Pete Field, Casey Tosh, Ben Mangan and Jimmy Pasakos, Melinda Muscat, Diokno Pasilan, Derek Robertson, Astrid Thiebault, Jessie Stevens, Dean Pedersen and Amie Sexton.

The Laneways project will kick off with a launch on Friday, July 1 from 5.30pm at Alfred Deakin Place.