Public Art Registry
Dichroic Vancouver
Photo: photo courtesy of the artist
Dichroic Vancouver - photo by photo courtesy of the artist
Dichroic Vancouver - photo by Photo courtesy of artist
Dichroic Vancouver - photo by Photo courtesy of artist
980 Howe Street
Manulife Tower
Private development
2015
Dichroic glass
Site-integrated work
In place
Privately owned
Light-based workDowntown
Description of work
Four thin bands of dichroic glass are embedded into the southeast and southwest facades of the tower. The glass changes colour depending on where one stands, in combination with the atmospheric and climatic conditions of the moment. During the weekdays, the lights are a soft shimmering pattern of green. On Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, the lights change to a very broad sequence of 23 different light shows.
Artist statement
This art project challenges the existing chromatics of downtown Vancouver. In a city known for architecture of greys, muted greens and blues, the resulting mass of construction can appear monolithic and somber at times, with only the occasional splash of colour. When these colours do occur, they seem almost jarring - too powerful and unresponsive to changes in light and weather. "Dichroic Vancouver" introduces a set of colour-changing bands of glass to the new Manulife Financial office building. Four delicate lines of dichroic glass are integrated into the southeast and southwest facades to bring nuances of shifting colour to viewers. The hues are affected by climatic and light modulations in the sky. Like weather and emotion, all is in a constant state of change. Viewers witness surprising and changing conditions of light and colour; a welcome addition to a sometimes monochromatic city. "Colour is a power which directly influences the soul." - Wassily Kandisky, Concerning the Spiritual in Art
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