Client: Edmonton Arts Council / City of Edmonton
Location: Edmonton, AB, Canada
Completion date: 2014
Artwork budget: $409,383
Project Team
Other
Katherine Kerr
Edmonton Arts Council
Artist
Konstantin Dimopoulos
Other
Robert Harpin
Edmonton Arts Council
Other
David Turnbull
Edmonton Arts Council
Industry Resource
David Simmonds
Art Installed
Overview
Wheatfield with Crows is a site-specific, environmental sculpture for the Meadows Community Recreation Centre in Edmonton, Alberta Canada. The gentle motion of the components reflects the agrarian landscape surrounding the city, as well as the flow of people who use the facility daily. The sculpture is composed of 5 “clusters” each measuring 4'-12' in height.
The sculpture is installed multiple parts on the East and West Plazas, serving to link the locations. The configuration of the rods comprising the sculpture allow them to move in the wind, which further animates the site with a gentle “chatter”.
Goals
Wheatfield with Crows is a linear, kinetic sculpture where colour, line, form, repetition, and mass reference the wheat fields of Alberta and the movement within the Meadows Recreation Centre. These wheat fields are the inspiration for this work. Situated near the southern city limits of Edmonton, the Meadows Recreation Centre site, was, until recently farmland. The facility overlooks empty fields, which are bounded by new suburban residential developments. This sculpture recalls the mesmeric waving wheat fields now covered by urban sprawl while still evoking the agricultural industry, which is still a critical element of Alberta’s economy. Dimopoulos was also inspired by the brooding skies and brilliant colours of Vincent van Gogh’s Wheatfield with Crows which the work references.
The power of the image comes alive and becomes a living, breathing work of art. Its theme and location examines the places human beings occupy both psychologically and physically – how we change our landscape, and how, in turn that landscape changes. As well, the movement and line of the sculpture is integrated into the natural patterns of the landscape design. The sculpture captures and defines the Centre's purpose, placing it within the larger context of its community and province.
Process
Animating the environs of recreation centres requires imagination and expertise to keep things original and meaningful. The selection committee and project team were impressed by the kinetic nature of this sculpture that subtly reflects the activity and motion of traditional recreational sports and activities, while at the same time evoking an important piece of Edmonton's history and honouring the site and its context.