Every year, during the holiday season, Winterfest takes over Seattle Center! For five weeks, the grounds are covered with free and affordable entertainment, sparkling lights, and activities for the whole family. And this year, temporary art installations will also cover the grounds beginning the last week of November through December.
Seattle Center, with the Office of Arts & Culture, selected Elizabeth Gahan, Celeste Cooning, Robb Kunz and Erin Shafkind and Will Gundy from the pre-qualified emerging artist roster to create temporary art during the Seattle Center’s Winterfest festival. The artists chosen represent a broad aesthetic and all relish in altering and embellishing environments. Tasked with joining the ever-popular Winterfest celebration, the artworks will range from whimsical to contemplative.
Celeste Cooning will use decorative ephemera to create an experience that uses reflective light and dynamic shadows. She recently installed a permanent piece, Bounty (pictured at left), on Jackson Park’s Golf Course Perimeter Trail.
Elizabeth Gahan will work with recycled materials to create a site specific installation. Her temporary piece Chromatic Crystallization (Seattle) was installed at Westlake Park summer of 2013. This piece won an Americans for the Arts Year in Review 2014 award.
Robb Kunz is creating a kinetic jukebox that will broadcast traditional holiday songs from around the world. Kunz is no stranger to temporary art installations, as he displayed Sound Showers for 2014’s Art Interruptions, and Sounds Squared at ARTSparks, an art activation project in Occidental Park, in 2013.
Erin Shafkind and Will Gundy of Cabbage tree Mob are creating a life-size illuminated holiday greeting card. They created Hi. I am not home right now., an interactive cutout piece for 2014’s temporary art project, Art Interruptions, on First Hill.
Keep updated for more information about locations and more details about each piece.
Image: “Bounty” by Celeste Cooning, in Jackson Park. Photo by Kelly Pajek.