Ben Rubin and Jer Thorp Herald / Harbinger The pattern on the plaza maps the movement of the Bow Glacier from the Wapta Icefield down toward Bow Lake.
LEDs, steel, granite, sound, sensors, software, electronics; 2017
Heralding the dawn of earth’s Anthropocene period, this artwork incorporates a collection of data feeds to illustrate the interrelationship between human activity in Calgary and the natural system of the Bow Glacier in the Canadian Rockies, which exists in a perpetual state of physical transformation. The artwork uses a specially constructed solar-powered seismic observatory near the glacier to monitor the Inside the lobby, the glacier’s real-time perturbations are rumblings, cracks and shifts of the moving ice. visually juxtaposed against the aggregated trajectories of The observatory continuously reports these movements via satellite to the artwork, where they are expressed as sound nearby pedestrians and vehicles in a sequence of overlapping and moving light. The glacier’s movements are rendered visualizations, while outside on the plaza the glacier’s visually as vertical displacements of horizontal scan lines, and also audibly here in the lobby and outside on the plaza. ceaseless activity is made audible, creating a visceral public presence for this restless complex of ice, rock, and water.
www.artsbrookfield.com/art_collection/herald-harbinger
BOW GLACIER Pedestrian traffic on the outdoor plaza is monitored using
BANFF NATIONAL PARK cameras. The movements of individuals are aggregated over the course of each day and rendered as directional symbols. BOW RIVER
CALGARY
T H BA
The artwork tracks average inbound and outbound vehicular traffic in real time at 14 locations around Calgary. 0 10 20 40 60 80 km This information is aggregated and displayed as seven “roadways” on the artwork’s seven LED fixtures.
The Bow glacier’s meltwater feeds into the Bow Lake and flows downstream in the Bow River, eventually passing through the center of Calgary on its way east to Hudson Bay, creating a powerful connection between the city and the ice. Supporters: Simpson’s Num-Ti-Jah Lodge and Parks Canada