Pandora LaCasses winter light display is part of Portlands identity. Shes planning to keep it that way. [Video]

Pandora LaCasse had never worked in color.

In 1999, Portland Downtown hired the artist for a holiday installation in Tommy’s Park. LaCasse was working with metal and wire and Plexiglas. Her palette was decidedly neutral, and her pieces didn’t require a power source.

“I was doing sculptural installations at that point, so I just needed to add the lights,” LaCasse, now 72, said. “You know, how hard is that? Pretty hard, turns out. It’s been fun ever since, actually.”

Today, Portland glows green and purple and red and hot pink from November to March. For 25 years, LaCasse has brightened the darkest days of the year with her seasonal displays. As the number of sites has increased to 15 and counting, so has the amount of time needed to install them every year. Preparations begin in late summer, well before the first notes of “All I Want For Christmas Is You” sounds over retail speakers.

For the …