Landmarks, the public art program of the University of Texas, announced today that it will unveil a new work by Los Angeles-based artist Jennifer Steinkamp, known for video projections and immersive installations that frequently reference nature and the passage of tiime.
Titled “Eon,” the 30 x 9 foot digital installation was commissioned by Landmarks for the newly renovated Welch Hall, a 1929 building that is UT’s largest academic facility and part of the College of Natural Sciences.
“Jennifer Steinkamp is singular in her ability to harness technology,” Andrée Bober, founder and director of Landmarks, said in a press release. “She’s a master of digital media and her installations make us think about our relationship to nature in entrancing ways.”
A permanent installation, “Eon” takes its inspiration from the concept of symbiosis, recognized by scientists as a key component of evolution. In Steinkamp’s installation, a looping one-minute digital video, biomorphic shapes undulate across the screen, punctuating an aqueous backdrop with bursts of pink, yellow, and multicolored fragments.
Once installed, “Eon” can be viewed through Welch Hall’s glass façade on Speedway, until the building reopens when classes at UT resume.
Landmarks will host a virtual opening for the project at 4:30 p.m. CST Sept. 10, with a live-streamed Q & A with Steinkamp, Bober, College of Natural Sciences Dean Paul M. Goldbart, and curatorial contributor on the project Rudolf Frieling, Curator of Media Arts at San Francisco MOMA.
Other online resources will include an audio guide, an essay by Frieling, a virtual tour of the installation, as well as activity guides for children and adults. See landmarks.utexas.edu
