Videos for Airports
I just returned from Doha, Qatar, and was delighted to see the new "film strip" video display in the Arrivals section of the Tom Bradley terminal. The project includes a curving line of 29 46-inch crystal display screens back-to-back with 29 other screens displaying artwork by 17 artists. The pieces were commissioned for the installation as part of the recent $737 million airport renovation project completed earlier this year. For the project, Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) and the Los Angeles Department of Cultural Affairs worked with Anne Bray of LA Freewaves, who provided curatorial direction; Jon Stolzberg (also knowns as Jon 9), who provided audio/visual consultation; and Sarah Cifarelli, who is the manager of LAWA's art program and helped oversee the project. "A group of artists has never had access to this level of sophisticated display technology before," explains Jon 9 in a video describing the technology that allowed the artists to choreograph imagery across the line of screens. The project is indeed dazzling, and offers visitors to LA an immediate embodiment of the city's highly kinetic and sophisticated visual culture.
In one of the pieces, a series of white windmill blades churns against the blue sky in the background to create a visual sculpture; the piece shifts attention to various topographies in the area, include the streets, deserts and beaches, each sequence becoming a carefully orchestrated visual dance of colors and shapes. The beautiful display definitely serves as a warm welcome home!Jon 9 on the LAX Video Art Installation