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The Nexus At U.N.C. Charlotte

Prize(s) Honorable Mentions
Company Mikyoung Kim Design
Lead Designers Mikyoung Kim
Completion Date 2018
Project Location Charlotte, NC
Project Link View
Entry Description

As Charlotte extended their public transit system, they put out a national call to artists to integrate art into the LYNX Blue Line. Mikyoung Kim Design was commissioned to create a sculpture at the UNC Charlotte station. The design concept originated in the spirit of university learning: abstracting the idea of a core of knowledge to communicate a message of movement, connectivity, transition and flux. The result is a series of enveloping, stainless-steel shadow screens, dynamically lit to transform the plaza into a shadow play environment.
The undulations of the custom-textured and perforated steel sculpture lead students and visitors to a central space defined by an inner core of light and shadow. Interactive lighting elements engage students and viewers, drawing them into the center of the plaza with a dynamic shadow pattern. The color and white light fixtures, affixed to four grey poles, surround the sculpture and inform the people waiting in — or passing through — the plaza after dark. During the day, natural light passing through the sculpture creates shadows, reinforcing the theme of transition. The sculpture folds and bends to encourage seating and engagement.