The NTC Foundation, which oversees the development and operation of 26 buildings at Arts District Liberty Station, has selected three new temporary art projects as part of a rotating public art program titled Installations at the Station. Featured San Diego artists will be Miki Iwasaki, Jason Xavier Lane and Michelle Montjoy. These widely diverse, site-specific outdoor art installations will add to the character of the historic 100-acre former Naval Training Center site as a thriving arts and culture destination for the community. “This new round of Installations at the Station brings opportunities to commission area artists to further transform the former Navy campus with unique and creative artworks infused with elements of the Navy’s rich history. Each project will have a community engagement element, and we invite the public to get involved with these outdoor works of art by participating in special related programming and activities or by simply wandering past to take a photo,” explained Alan Ziter, NTC Foundation executive director. The 36 submitted proposals were reviewed by the Art in Public Places Committee, who considered whether the project incorporated innovation and community engagement, showcased the history of San Diego, enhanced the dignity of the site, and added to the creative hub of the Arts District. In addition, the panel looked at authenticity, creativity, budget and the artist’s experience. “I was impressed by the caliber of artists who responded to our request for submissions. I applaud the committee for their thoughtful discussion and hard work. Each work reflects the artist’s strong artistic skill and hints at San Diego’s history,” said Vicki Reed, chair of the Art in Public Places Committee.
Installations will be on display for at least one year. The NTC Foundation is excited to commission these three projects, two of which (by Jason Lane and Miki Iwasaki) will be created in collaboration with the Mingei International Museum, which has a temporary home at the Arts District while their Balboa Park location is being renovated. 1 ARTIST: Miki Iwasaki, San Diego.
INSTALLATION NAME: Facetime.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION: This installation will contain three sculptures incorporating steel and wooden bench elements, representing the universal, primal need for shelter and spaces for face-to-face conversation. An artist reception, open to the public, will showcase the connection between small-scale model making and large-scale architecture and construction.
LOCATION: Sybil Stockdale Rose Garden outside Dick Laub NTC Command Center, between Building 200 and Building 201, near Shop Mingei and Cafe? Mingei.
UNVEILING: Aug. 10.
Iwasaki’s childhood obsession with making and building objects eventually led him to pursue a career in architecture. His experience includes work in New York, Los Angeles and San Diego, and spans a variety of project types, including residential, office, restaurant, retail and gallery work. Throughout his academic and early professional years, Iwasaki remained dedicated to his own art projects and furniture designs. Iwasaki’s interests and skills constantly expand in the fields of architecture, art and design as he pushes himself to explore new materials, methods and projects. Iwasaki is currently adjunct faculty at Woodbury University San Diego, School of Architecture, and he runs a design and fabrication studio in Barrio Logan. He has completed numerous permanent national public art installations, and his work has been featured in local, national and international press publications. “The opportunities for congregation and socialization around the installation will activate the surrounding space, furthering the Arts District as a connection point which forges creative interaction among locals and visitors,” Iwasaki said. ARTIST: Jason Xavier Lane, San Diego.
INSTALLATION NAME: Tessellation #1.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION: This sculpture is influenced by craft and design in the San Diego region, past and present. A sculptural monolith clad in three-dimensional, hand-cast concrete tiles will be set beneath two existing magnolia trees. A bench of hand-hewn timber will be inset within the sculpture to reflect Liberty Station’s original 1920s grand post-and-beam roof construction and the legacy of naval shipbuilding. An artist reception highlighting Tessellation #1 will be open to the public.
LOCATION: Sybil Stockdale Rose Garden outside Dick Laub NTC Command Center, between Building 200 and Building 201, near Shop Mingei and Cafe? Mingei.
UNVEILING: Sept.6. Lane is a designer, craftsman, partner in the award-winning design team Bells & Whistles, and principal of JXL Studio. The son of two artist/draftspersons, Lane was studying philosophy when he left school to become a founding member of the experimental-aktionist group ADRV. He transitioned from being a touring performer and began to immerse himself in the world of design and the craft of woodworking. He went on to produce custom furniture, architectural elements and stage props for a select clientele, most notably Dita von Tesse. This led to the development of a fruitful collaboration producing many award-winning and published hand-made interiors. In his most recent venture, JXL studio, he has created a hands- on atelier dedicated to designing and building sculptural objects and interiors in the applied art tradition, inspired by subtle forms of modern architecture and the cinematic visuals of masters like Kubrick and Fellini. “I look forward to the opportunity to create something that has never existed for the public to discover, contemplate, and hopefully enjoy – and also to experience the ways in which it will patina from time, use, and nature,” Lane said. ARTIST: Michelle Montjoy, Oceanside.
INSTALLATION NAME: A Dime to Call Home.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION: A collection of sea bags cast in cement, revealing bits of soft clothing and “arms” knitted from nautical rope reaching up from each bag, this installation represents the transformations new recruits experience upon entering the military and its contrasts to home life. The artist would like to add a public engagement element to the installation by knitting on tabletop looms or casting a small time capsule of sea bags with school groups.
LOCATION: Archways along the North Promenade.
UNVEILING: Oct. 4. As an artist and art teacher in San Diego County for more than 20 years, Montjoy has had solo shows at the Oceanside Museum of Art and Athenaeum Arts and Music Library, and she was an artist-in-residence at Art Produce Gallery. A recent Creative Catalyst Grant recipient, she will also have work on display at MCASD Downtown beginning this June. At a recent installation at the San Diego Airport, she created intricately knitted sculptural environments from graphic t- shirts, using large tabletop looms reminiscent of those used for traditional knitting projects. “I see my installation at Liberty Station as a conversation about the shifts of identity, location, and routine a recruit encounters when they enter the military, and the connection they have to their family, home, and previous life,” Montjoy said. The program is overseen by the NTC Foundation’s Art in Public Places Committee, dedicated to placing and commissioning significant and engaging visual art in ARTS DISTRICT Liberty Station to attract visitors, engage artists, create a sense of place and provide insight into the historical and cultural essence of the site. To learn more about the Foundation’s Installations at the Station program, visit ntcfoundation.org/art-in-public-places/.