It takes 158 pieces of glass, eight light bulbs, two people placing the glass and a crew of electricians to bring a new piece of artwork to Ball State University's campus.
After two years of preparation, a 23-foot-tall by 40-foot-wide lightpainting is installed in the lobby of the Music Instruction Building at the corner of McKinley and Riverside avenues.
A lightpainting is a sculpture made of glass with a special metallic coating that transmits one color of light and reflects its compliment color.
Steve Knapp, independent artist and creator of the lightpainting, said the design was influenced by the space it would occupy, as well as the building's style and purpose.
"I want the painting to capture, as much as it can, the aspect of music," Knapp said. "Music moves me, and when I'm in the moment of creating something, I feel that when the art itself and music take hold, it takes me to a different place."
The piece is made of angles and natural light passing through the glass, Knapp said.
Knapp was unanimously selected to create a piece of artwork by a Ball State art commission committee in the spring of 2005.
Robert Kvam, head of the committee and dean of the College of Fine Arts, said there was space left for artwork in the lobby when the Music Instruction Building was built.
"The committee and a private donor looked over several submissions, but we narrowed it down to four people who we asked to send prototypes of their work," he said. "When we saw Knapp's work we knew it would fit the space nicely and be accepted by the general public."
In January, Knapp began cutting glass and shaping pieces. Because his studio was not big enough for the size of the painting, he had to rent a bigger studio. The painting took three months to create. After he finished mapping the design in his studio and working out the electrical connections, it took another two and one-half weeks to dissemble the piece and about a week more to re-install the piece in the performance hall.
"When you look at the piece in the daylight it's a sculpture of pieces with the light and color almost disappearing," Knapp said. "When it's dark and the electricity is on, you get a painting of light. It compliments life because life is messy, complicated and changes all the time."
Peter Blume, a member of the committee and director of the Museum of Art, said the way projected light changes with natural light in Knapp's artwork is similar to how music constantly changes.
"This is the first public work of art that is readily accessible to students and others in the larger community," Blume said. "Many campuses have pieces of art on their grounds outdoors and this is the first move to make that possible at Ball State."
Public art is a factor in people's lives, Knapp said. When people look at history, it is the art of a civilization that people focus on most, he said.
Knapp said his earliest memory was climbing a mountain in New Hampshire and seeing shadows play across the snow. Since that time, he has looked at how art played against the surface of materials, and in 1993 he first worked with lightpaintings. He started doing sculptures, then he said he realized how light could work with the sculptures, and then found ways to put the art on walls.
"My dream is that someone will do their first piece of music and this painting will be their inspiration," he said. "It serves as a reminder to students that your hopes and dreams are possible and to not limit yourself."
MARG:
For more information about Steve Knapp visit lightpaintings.com and stephenknapp.com.
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