FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Nick Harkin/ Christine Carrino May 12, 2014 Carol Fox and Associates 773.327.3830 x103/103 [email protected] [email protected]
MILLENNIUM PARK TO HOST A SPECIAL INSTALLATION BY THE WORLD-RENOWNED SPANISH SCULPTOR JAUME PLENSA IN CELEBRATION OF THE PARK’S 10TH ANNIVERSARY
“1004 Portraits” to open June 18, 2014 and Remain in Chicago through December 2015
CHICAGO – In celebration of its 10th anniversary, Millennium Park will feature a special installation of work by Jaume Plensa, the world-renowned sculptor and creator of one of the Park’s most prominent attractions, the Crown Fountain. “Jaume Plensa: 1004 Portraits” features four large-scale portraits of young girls positioned in the park such that they complement and expand upon the story of the 1000 LED portraits of Chicago residents that illuminate the Crown Fountain. The installation will open to the public on Wednesday, June 18 and remain on display through December 2015; it is free and open to the public.
The first sculpture, “Looking Into My Dreams, Awilda,” is made of resin and stands 39 feet tall. It will be encountered by visitors as they enter the Park at Michigan Avenue & Madison Street. The work’s surreal and majestic presence bridges the frenetic energy and distractions of city life with the tranquility of the park. Magnificent in scale, the piece’s beauty, power and serenity encourage viewers to stop and experience a moment of quiet contemplation.
Three cast iron sculptural portraits, titled “Laura,” “Paula” and “Ines,” will be installed in the South Boeing Gallery (immediately east of the Crown Fountain) and stand 21 to 23 feet tall. Despite their great materiality, the sculptures have a hologram-like quality. Plensa’s serene, dreamlike portraits provide a peaceful counterbalance to the children’s boisterous play in fountain.
The installation of the works, which are on loan from the artist, is co-presented by Millennium Park Foundation with the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events, and is sponsored by The Boeing Company, with support from the Richard H. Driehaus Foundation.
“These four portraits are each individually awe-inspiring but in this configuration also perfectly extend the powerful grandeur of Mr. Plensa’s Crown Fountain into the surrounding areas of Millennium Park,” said Donna La Pietra, chair of the Millennium Park Foundation. “We are
-more- tremendously grateful to Mr. Plensa for allowing Chicago to host these pieces; we can think of no better way to celebrate our 10th anniversary than by hosting such an impressive array of works by one of the artists whose contributions to Millennium Park have made it a model for public spaces world-wide.”
Plensa will host a public discussion of his work Monday, June 16, from 6-7 p.m. in Fullerton Hall at the Art Institute of Chicago, 111 S. Michigan. Presented in partnership with the Millennium Park Foundation, the conversation is free and open to the public; guests should enter through the Michigan Avenue entrance.
Plensa’s work will also be on display throughout the Chicago area this summer. Richard Gray Gallery will exhibit “Private Dreams” in its Chicago space, June 12 – September 27, with an opening reception June 12, 6-8 p.m. The exhibition will feature eight new sculptures from Plensa’s iconic series of heads in a range of materials including bronze, glass and, for the first time, volcanic basalt. Standing six feet tall, the basalt works capture portraits that seem to silently emerge from the stone, with the backs of the sculptures deliberately left unpolished and raw. Installed as a group, imposing yet peaceful, the three figures lead viewers into a new conceptual and even spiritual space. In addition, his “Silent Music” will be on display on the grounds of the Ravinia Festival this summer.
About Jaume Plensa Jaume Plensa (Spanish, b.1955), one of the world's foremost sculptors working in the studio and public realm over the past 30 years, has presented more than 30 projects spanning the world in such cities as Chicago, Dubai, London, Liverpool, Nice, Tokyo, Toronto and Vancouver. The winner of many national and international awards, including the 2013 Velazquez Price awarded by the Spanish Cultural Ministry, Plensa has had solo exhibitions at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia, Madrid; Galerie National du Jeu de Paume, Paris; Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Bretton, UK; Nasher Sculpture Center, Dallas; the Musée Picasso, Antibes, France; and Espoo Museum of Modern Art, Helsinki, Finkland among many others. The artist lives and works in Barcelona.
About Millennium Park Millennium Park is located on Michigan Avenue, bordered by Randolph St. to the north, Columbus Dr. to the east and Monroe St. to the south. The Park is open 6 a.m. – 11 p.m. daily. Convenient parking is located in the Millennium Park Garage (entrance on Columbus at Monroe or Randolph) and Grant Park North. For the latest news and events, visit millenniumpark.org, like the park on Facebook and follow us on Twitter, @Millennium_Park.
Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events The Department of Cultural Affairs and Special Events (DCASE) is dedicated to enriching Chicago’s artistic vitality and cultural vibrancy. This includes fostering the development of Chicago’s non-profit arts sector, independent working artists and for-profit arts businesses; providing a framework to guide the City’s future cultural and economic growth, via the 2012 Chicago Cultural Plan; marketing the City’s cultural assets to a worldwide audience; and presenting high-quality, free and affordable cultural programs for residents and visitors.
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