NKyTribune staff
BLINK, illuminated by ArtsWave, has announced more than 40 interactive installation locations, curated by ArtWorks for the October 10-13 art, light and culture event. Among these light-based sculptures and installations are Connected Life, Lightbattle, Rainbow Bridge and re:FRACTION.
Lightbattle, sponsored by UC Health and Red Bike, is a unique interactive bicycle fueled installation that allows BLINK attendees to take a seat on a bicycle and unleash the epic challenge for red and blue. While pedaling they expand their own arch of light and attempt to out cycle their opponents (provided images, click to enlarge).
Lightbattle
Lightbattle, sponsored by UC Health and Red Bike, is a unique interactive bicycle fueled installation that allows BLINK attendees to take a seat on a bicycle and unleash the epic challenge for red and blue. While pedaling they expand their own arch of light and attempt to out cycle their opponents. The winner will be doused with a dazzling waterfall of light.
Connected Life
Cincinnati Bell and the University of Cincinnati’s Center for Simulations & Virtual Environment Research have created a one-of-a-kind, immersive virtual reality (VR) experience for BLINK. The Cincinnati Bell Mobile Unit will be showcasing a High-Definition, 360-degree VR experience and time-lapse footage of some of the most iconic Cincinnati venues on display at Blink 2019.
Rainbow Bridge
Rainbow Bridge is 27 feet high and 15,000 pounds of steel painted with iconic colors and emblazoned with over 25,000 individually addressable LED lights. That is nearly one mile of total LEDs. It is sponsored by the generosity of Procter & Gamble as well as individual donors from the Jewish Federation of Cincinnati and the Jewish Community Relations Council.
re:FRACTION
Fraction, the first ever architectural surface mapping projection of its kind, will illuminate Cincinnati’s Fountain Square and take visitors on a light filled journey. Presented by Fifth Third Bank, Fraction will transform all of Fountain Square into a massive object of immersive art via light, color, animation and sound.
Rainbow Bridge is 27 feet high and 15,000 pounds of steel painted with iconic colors and emblazoned with over 25,000 individually addressable LED lights. That is nearly one mile of total LEDs.
BLINK 2019 Interactive Installation Location Artists by Zone:
THE P&G BANKS ZONE
· Grace DuVal and Lindsey Whittle with ArtWorks apprentices Lura Bentley, Carter Ferguson, Ridwan Haque, Chelsea Lee, Grant Kelly, Natalie Pope, Adam Hale, Jada Kirk and Christopher Brooks Chicago, IL and Cincinnati, OH
· Tom Meyer, Philadelphia, PA
· Queen City Milk Duds, Cincinnati, OH
· Upside America, Artists Todd Lipscomb, Elizabeth Schmidt, Sean Cottengim, and Francisco Cardona, Cincinnati, OH
COVINGTON ZONE
· The BLDG Refuge, Covington, KY
· Billy Bryant and Francisco Cardona, Seattle, WA and Louisville, KY
· Tyler Hamilton, Cincinnati, OH
· W. M. Kelley, Louisville, KY
· Northern Kentucky University, Artists Brad McCombs, Hans Schelhas, and Amy Gillingham, Cincinnati, OH and Northern Kentucky
· Dan Shields, Covington, KY
THE FIFTH THIRD BANK FOUNDATION DOWNTOWN ZONE
· Ezra Cline & JP Stewart, Cincinnati, OH
· JONBOB with words by Liz Bell Young, Cincinnati, OH
· Jimmy Kuehnle, Cleveland, OH
· Lateral Office & CS Design with soundscape by Mitchell Akiyama, Montreal, Canada
· Virginia Melnyk, Buffalo, NY
· Cynthia & Davis Stanard, Cincinnati, OH
· Josh Stout, Cincinnati, OH
· VENIVIDIMULTIPLEX, artists Joost van Bergen, Dirk Schlebusch and Onne Walsmit, Amsterdam, Netherlands
FINDLAY MARKET ZONE
· Mallory Feltz, Cincinnati, OH
· Sediment Design, Cincinnati, OH
· Jessica Wolf, Cincinnati, OH
Fraction, the first ever architectural surface mapping projection of its kind, will illuminate Cincinnati’s Fountain Square and take visitors on a light filled journey. Fraction will transform all of Fountain Square into a massive object of immersive art via light, color, animation and sound.
THE JACOB G. SCHMIDLAPP TRUST OTR ZONE
· The Cincinnati Art Museum in collaboration with the Art Academy of Cincinnati presents video work by artist Alice Weston, Cincinnati, OH
· The Creative Institutions on Jackson Street, Art Academy of Cincinnati, Know Theatre, and Solasta Theatre Lab, Cincinnati, OH
· Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra with Chris Kallmyer, Cincinnati, OH
· Lizzy DuQuette with ArtWorks teaching artist Jesse Mooney Bullock and Apprentices Samara Bill, Rose Haverland Joffe, Gray Draper, Leo Hernandez, Cincinnati, OH
· Amy East and Courtney Zunis, Cincinnati, OH
· Kyle Eli Ebersole and Ian Molitors, Cincinnati, OH and Columbus, OH
· Grey Midwest, Artists Kaitlyn Keyes, Peter Roman, Lyndsey Noland, and Katy Martinez, Cincinnati, OH
· Keep Cincinnati Beautiful, Artists Alistair Probst, Katie Davis, and Claire Bryson, Cincinnati, OH
· Kemper Sauce Studios, Artists Robby Blu, Jon Bedell, Tom Ploetz, Brian Bailey, AK Vadlamani, and Evan Frank, Cincinnati, OH
· Kolar Design with the Cincinnati Parks, Cincinnati, OH
· Pam Kravetz & Co., Cincinnati, OH
· Alan Parkinson, Nottingham, UK
· Polyrhythm Studio, Cincinnati, OH
· RADAR Art Collective, Artists Robin Schwartzman, Anna Abhau Elliot, and Desireé Moore, Minneapolis, MN, Columbia, MO and Spartanburg, SC
VARIOUS ZONES
· Brave Berlin and Vincent Lighting, Cincinnati, OH
· Forealism Tribe, Hebron, KY and Miami, FL
“We received more than 100 submissions for interactive installation locations. That’s double what we saw in 2017 – and it gave our jury the opportunity to choose the best of the very best for BLINK,” said Tamara Harkavy, founding CEO and artistic director of ArtWorks. The artists creating the interactive installation locations represent four countries and 11 states. Twenty-nine of the artists or artist groups are from the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky region, including two installation locations created by ArtWorks apprentices. ArtWorks youth apprentices work side-by-side with teaching artists to create public art and community impact projects. Projects created for BLINK include “Other Worldly” by Grace DuVal and Lindsey Whittle and “Earth Citizens Courage Assembly” by Lizzy DuQuette. Download photos of each here. The more-than-40 interactive installation locations will complement and enhance BLINK’s 39 projection mappings and 16 new murals, previously announced for 2019.
BLINK Entertainment
A diverse line-up of more than 80 entertainers, curated by The AGAR, was also unveiled. BLINK will feature entertainment, all four days, throughout the event. The line-up includes a free Saturday night concert by national recording artist Grouplove, presented in partnership with the Kroger Wellness Your Way Festival and Corporex.
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Community Celebration Kits
A limited number of Community Celebration Kits are now available on the BLINK website.
“We invite area retailers, businesses, and BLINK champions to join us as an official partner and community light. By using a Community Celebration Kit, you will support the region’s largest-scale free community event while helping visitors find their way through BLINK and its surrounding neighborhoods,” said Brendon Cull, senior vice president and COO of the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber.
BLINK, illuminated by ArtsWave, will happen Oct. 10-13 from Cincinnati’s Findlay Market neighborhood to Covington, Kentucky – bridging two states, and spanning 30 city blocks and the Ohio River.
The only U.S. event of its kind, BLINK will feature large-scale projection mapping, murals by international artists, interactive light sculptures and diverse entertainment.
Free and open to the public, BLINK’s inaugural four-night event in October 2017 spanned 20 blocks and was experienced by more than one million visitors, the largest gathering of people ever in downtown Cincinnati and Over-the-Rhine.
