futures-north

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Futures North on MPR

Listen to Molly Reichert and John Kim discuss the ongoing Phase Change project on MPR News with correspondent Paul Huttner. 

https://www.mprnews.org/story/2019/02/14/measuring-the-costs-of-climate-change

#phasechange MPR

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Futures North Selected for New Public Art Commission in Minneapolis

Futures North has been selected in a national RFP process for a new public art commission in Minneapolis: an artistic glass pattern for the city’s New Public Service Building. The building, currently under construction adjacent to City Hall Plaza, is designed by the team of MSR and Henning Larsen and is being constructed by M.A. Mortenson. Futures North is working on bird-safe glass artwork for two locations in the building: the 10th floor staff lounge and the 2nd floor Skyway level. Stay tuned for updates as these projects progress!

#publicart #minneapolis #minnesota #futuresnorth #birdsafety #glass

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PHASE TWO to Debut at Richardson Nature Center in Bloomington on January 27

On January 27, 2018, Futures North and the Richardson Nature Center in Bloomington, Minnesota will present Phase Two, a public artwork that creatively re-presents the effects of climate change with an engaging spatial construction of melting ice. Designed by public art collaborative Futures North, the ephemeral installation will consist of ice harvested from Wood Duck Pond at the Richardson Nature Center during their annual Ice Harvesting Day. This ice will face a lattice of programmable infra-red lamps that will fluctuate according to data derived from climate change research. The heat produced by the lights will correspond to historical and projected data and melt the sculpture according to three different scenarios: a pre-industrial simulation that depicts climatic conditions as if the industrial era never happened; the present day scenario; and the “worst case” scenario that will demonstrate the effects of the most extreme climate change forecasts.

The event runs from 11am-3pm. More info at this link.

An earlier version of Phase Two was presented at Northern Spark 2016 (as Phase Change) and was supported by Northern Lights.mn and the McKnight Foundation.

#richardsonnaturecenter #phasetwo #futuresnorth #phasechange

#richarsonnaturecenter #phasetwo #futuresnorth #phasechange

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Phase Change Recognized by Americans for the Arts.

We are thrilled to announce that Phase Change, a project completed by Futures North for the 2016 Northern Spark arts festival, has been selected for the 2017 Public Art NetworkYear in Review. PAN Year In Review is the only national program that specifically recognizes the most compelling public art. Chosen by a jury from 325 entries representing communities across the country, the roster of winning projects was unveiled at Americans for the Arts’ 2017 Annual Convention in San Francisco. For a full list of winners, please see this link.

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Phase Change Wins SXSW Eco Place By Design Competition

We are thrilled to announce that our project Phase Change has been selected as the winner in the Art/Interaction category of the 2016 SXSW Eco Place By Design competition. The competition celebrates innovative design work that transforms our everyday surroundings and creates positive social and environmental impact. Futures North partner Molly Reichert presented the project to the competition jury this week at the SXSW Eco conference in Austin, and the winners were announced last night at the conference award ceremony. 

Many thanks to Northern Lights.mn and the McKnight Foundation for making Phase Change possible, and to Climate Generation: A Will Steger Legacy for participating in the June installation and expanding the project’s educational impact.

Announcement: 2016 SXSW Eco Place By Design Winners

#sxsweco #sxsw #publicart #interactiveart #art #minneapolis #minnesota #onlyinmn #phasechange #futuresnorth #nspk16 #northernspark #ice

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New video documentation of our recent project Phase Change, a finalist in the 2016 SXSW Eco Place By Design competition.

#sxsweco #placebydesign #pxd #publicart #nspk16 #minneapolis

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Phase Change selected as finalist in SXSW Eco Place By Design 2016

Phase Change, a recently completed installation by Futures North for Northern Spark 2016, has been selected as a finalist for this year’s SXSW Eco Place By Design competition. The competition honors creative projects that are engaged in promoting social, economic, and environmental change. Futures North will present the project during the SXSW Eco conference in October in Austin, TX, when the jury will announce the winners. 

#publicart #sxsweco

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Our new project, Phase Change, will debut at this year’s Northern Spark arts festival on June 11, 2016 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

Phase Change creatively re-presents the effects of climate change through an engaging and dynamic spatial construction of melting ice. The ephemeral installation consists of 12,000 pounds of ice harvested from Lake Calhoun (Dakota name "Bde Maka Ska") in March 2016 and stored passively from March-June. This sculptural ice form faces a lattice of infra-red lamps that are programmed to fluctuate based on data derived from climate change research. The heat produced by the lights corresponds to historical and projected climate change data and melts the sculpture according to three different climate change scenarios: a pre-industrial simulation that depicts climatic conditions as if the industrial era never happened; the present day scenario; and the “worst case” scenario that demonstrates the effects of the most extreme climate change forecasts.

Futures North has partnered with youth from Yea! MN and educators from Climate Generation: A Will Steger Legacy to guide visitors in conversation about the conditions that threaten to overcome us. Visitors are invited to sit and observe the ‘phase change’ of ice melting to water and consider what our collective future holds.

Phase Change is supported by Northern Lights and the McKnight Foundation. 

#phasechange #futuresnorth #perceive #nspk16

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We just wrapped up some new video documentation of the Meander project at CHS Field in St. Paul. Thanks to Eric Schleicher for terrific work on this video!

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Meander opened to the public at an event at CHS Field on June 4. The event featured remarks by Jody Martinez (of St. Paul Parks & Recreation) and Mike Veeck (owner of the St. Paul Saints), followed by a brief artists’ talk by Futures North. Thanks to everyone for coming out! Also thanks to Cheryl Wilgren Cline and Paul Johnson for sharing some of these photos with us.

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Meander, the permanent public artwork commissioned for CHS Field in St. Paul, Minnesota, opens to the public on Thursday, June 4. The artwork anchors the west entrance of the ballpark along Broadway in Lowertown St. Paul. The artwork is inspired by the Mississippi River, which runs several blocks away, and consists of fifteen sculptural pillars that evoke the river's geometry and geography. LED lights embedded in the top of each pillar broadcast information about the river through a series of dynamic animations that communicate data related to water temperature, water quality, and wind speed along the river's length.

Futures North collaborated with fabricators Concreteworks, glass artist David Ruth, and programming consultant Max McDougall to construct the project; partners on the design and client team included Ryan Companies, the St. Paul Saints baseball club, Snow Kreilich Architects, Bob Close Studio, and the City of St. Paul Parks & Recreation Department.

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Meander construction update: photos from a recent site visit to CHS Field. Molly and Daniel checked in on the rapid progress that Ryan Companies and their subcontractors have made on CHS Field and the site work for Meander. The planter slab and retaining walls have been poured, and the structural steel posts that will support Meander’s pillars have been installed. Conduit has been run to each of the pillar locations. It is amazing to see the scale of the artwork in its site, and its relationship to both the ballpark and the adjacent context of Lowertown St. Paul.

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John Kim (Futures North) and Will Kent-Daggett have completed work on Timelaps, currently on display at Macalester College. Work on the installation was initiated by an earlier Futures North project, Lakeforms.

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TönöSauna at Northern Spark

Check out these great photos of TönöSauna at Northern Spark 2014. (image above by Dusty Hoskovec).

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Futures North at Northern Spark 2014

Futures North partners Daniel Dean, John Kim and Molly Reichert are a part of a number of projects in this year's Northern Spark, an all night art event in Minneapolis on Saturday, June 14:

TönöSauna - Futures North partners Molly Reichert, John Kim, and Daniel Dean in collaboration with John Moore, Emily Stover, Lara Avery, Matt Barthalemy, and Bill Lindeke. Sponsored by the American Swedish Institute.

Hotel Hotel - Futures North partner Daniel Dean with Kate Casanova and Ben Moren.

POSTography - Futures North partner Molly Reichert in collaboration with a number of Twin Cities based architects and designers.

Find us there!

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'Meander' Selected for Lowertown Ballpark Public Art

We are pleased to announce that Meander, one of two Futures North proposals for the Lowertown Ballpark public art project, has been selected by the St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department and the Lowertown Ballpark project team for the new ballpark's west plaza. 

Meander consists of 28 illuminated pillars that take their form from the historical geometry and bathymetry of the upper Mississippi River. Stay tuned to the project journal for updates as we move forward with fabrication and installation of the artwork. 

See the official announcement for more information. Meander has also been featured in both the Star Tribune and the Pioneer Press. 

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The Star Tribune features coverage of Futures North’s two design options for the Lowertown Ballpark public art project.