Part of Art Assets’ mission is to bring art into our everyday lives. To that end, we regularly commission artists to create site-specific installations on the balcony at our office. The balcony faces the Queensboro Bridge and the Roosevelt Island aerial tramway, providing artwork not only for ourselves, but also for the thousands of people crossing the bridge and tram every day.

November 2012: Jon Morris

Art Assets is delighted to announce Kaleidoscope, the newest iteration of The Balcony Project, a rotating exhibition at Art Assets’ office.

Kaleidoscope was conceived by Jon Morris of The Windmill Factory:

“The Balcony Project, sponsored by Art Assets and Barbara Koz Paley, is strikingly close to the imposing steel Queensboro Bridge and the contrasting soft, white, air-filled tennis dome. It’s not an expansive vista but a close-up, detailed show where bridge traffic, strong breeze, and the city soundscape rotate in and out of attention. Standing on the balcony, feeling the wind, I conceived Kaleidoscope.

“23 hand-brushed plexiglass panels affixed to metal spring tension rods parallel the balcony’s permanent glass/steel construction and mirror the steel beams of the bridge. Each panel rotates at the wind’s discretion, beginning an interactive game with Mother Nature as she reveals and conceals the city. The panels generate a feeling of comfort, but anticipation builds as you wait for them to activate.

“The panels blur the objects behind them, diffusing light with their brushed opaque side and reflecting it with the opposite smooth glossy side. RGB LEDs softly illuminate the panels at night, drawing attention from the street, the bridge, and other apartments. From the outside, Kaleidoscope is a mystery. Passersby are held in suspense. They become voyeurs as they wait for a glimpse of the balcony, the apartment, or some life within.

“Kaleidoscope continuously reveals infinite new perspectives.”

Medium: Spring tension rods, impact-resistant polycarbonate tubing, low-friction washers, hand brushed plexiglass.
Fabrication by Jon Morris & Domagoj Blazevic.
All photos copyright Domagoj Blazevic.