Sierra Madre Public Art Design shown – Nov. 21

The public is invited to see the proposed final art plans by artist Kyungmi Shin for the Sierra Made Village Corridor Public Art Project at a community meeting on Thursday, November 21, 2013. The presentation will be made during a District 4 community meeting sponsored by Councilmember Gene Masuda from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the former St. Luke Medical Center, 2632 Washington Blvd.
In January, artist Kyungmi Shin of Shin Gray Studio was commissioned through the City of Pasadena’s Public Art Program to create a permanent, exterior public artwork as part of the Sierra Madre Villa Avenue Corridor Improvement Project. The project was approved by the City’s Arts and Culture Commission Oct. 9 and will go before the City Council later this year. If approved, the project will be installed next year.
Spanning the length of the freeway underpass, the artwork creates a colorful and inviting environment that encourages pedestrian activity and the use of public transit, particularly the adjacent Sierra Madre Villa Metro Gold Line Station. The artwork’s theme of transportation is reflected through descriptive and poetic transit-related words and images that reference five modes of transportation: bus, train, bicycling, walking and running.
The artwork consists of three elements including light pole word sculptures, medallions and a ceiling mural. The light pole artworks are inspired by the notion of promoting the use of public transportation, bicycling, walking and running. The ceiling mural is inspired by the wheels of various transportation modalities as well as various fruits such as citrus fruit and grapes cultivated in farms in the early agricultural settlement in the East Pasadena area. The medallions contain visual imagery and words associated with alternative transportation.
Shin Gray Studio in Los Angeles is a partnership of Kyungmi Shin and Todd Gray, a sculptor and a photographer. After decades of studio experience, the Shin Gray team entered the public art field. Their previous works are in collections at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Berkeley Art Museum and the Smithsonian Institution.

The Pasadena Public Art Program seeks to build a publicly available collection of contemporary art that celebrates the human spirit and condition. The Public Art Program encourages public dialogue, understanding, and enjoyment of public art. For more information about the Planning Department’s Cultural Affairs Division, visit www.cityofpasadena.net/arts or call (626) 744-7062.

For more information about the City of Pasadena visit www.cityofpasadena.net or follow us on Twitter @PasadenaGov.

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