Interactive art installations are popping up everywhere, from candy-coated exhibits to taco-themed wonderlands. At Tempe Marketplace, guests can enjoy a holiday-themed installation called Candy Cane Lane, which features more than 100 pieces including 7-foot tall gingerbread men, 6-foot-tall lollipops, a huge hot cocoa mug with marshmallow seats, enormous Hershey’s Kisses and a giant gumball machine that blows around plastic balls.
“I think people are looking for more experiences when they’re coming to centers and having an art installation that is visually enticing and interactive and interesting, it’s just another reason for people to come and enjoy our center,” says Emilie Andrews, regional marketing director at Vestar, the real estate company that owns the retail space.
Andrews got the inspiration for Candy Cane Lane last year when she visited a similar center in Salt Lake City called The Gateway, which had a breakfast-themed interactive installation.
“Rooms were dedicated to breakfast foods like bacon and pancakes and I thought, ‘I want to do that for the holidays, and I want to make it Candyland-inspired,’” she says.
Every night at 7 and 8 p.m., faux snow falls from the sky (thanks to snowblowers on the roof) to make Candy Cane Lane “extra magical,” Andrews says. Guests can also admire Tempe Marketplace’s 60-foot Christmas tree.
“We want to have something that makes [people] want to stay longer and enjoy their experience more and make memories here,” Andrews says.
The free installation is located in The District outsides of Dave & Buster’s and will be open daily until January 1.
Candy Cane Lane at Tempe Marketplace
2000 E. Rio Salado Pkwy., Tempe
480-966-9338, tempemarketplace.com
