To celebrate the 150th Anniversary of Brooklyn’s Prospect Park, AREA4 and Suchi Reddy of Readymade Architecture and Design collaborated with the Prospect Park Alliance to create a public art exhibition that features more than 7,000 pinwheels. Called The Connective Project, the installation covers the Rose Garden in the northeast corner of the park with yellow pinwheels that include art and written work submitted by the public. Influenced by the vision of the park’s 1867 designers Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux, Reddy's aspiration for the project was to create a playful urban retreat that sparks a conversation about the value of public spaces.
It's an honor to work in this world of wonder that Olmsted and Vaux's created, and to be able to add a contemporary sense of discovery, said architect Suchi Reddy of Reddymade Design.
Blanketing the field with a sea of color and movement, the installation provides a space for children and adults to engage with the park. Calling on childhood memories, pinwheels were chosen to draw a wide range of visitors to the under-utilized area of the park. The object was also selected for its relationship to nature, with its movement that is informed by wind patterns.
To involve the community, the project began with an open call for artwork to be featured on the inside folds of the pinwheels. Additionally, artists were given the opportunity to have their work evaluated and selected by a panel that included members of the Brooklyn Council of the Arts and the Brooklyn Museum among others.
Prints of the top ten chosen pieces, including the winning piece Chitin & Furanocoumarin by artist Ansel Oommen, will be available for purchase at the Brooklyn Museum gift shop. Along with the previously submitted artwork, visitors are encouraged to contribute to the installation by folding and drawing their own paper pinwheels made from weather-resistant and compostable stone dust.
The challenge was to create a concept that would unite and inspire the community. This large scale installation has allowed us to invite public participation while working with artists and designers to create a world class experience said Grainne Coen of AREA4, the creative agency that worked on the project.
The installation will be on display from July 7-17.
News Via: DNA PR.
