Art installation complete at Downtown business
Lankford and Associates announced the completion of the installation of “Bamboo,” the latest addition to the collection of art at Advanced Equities Plaza, at 655 West Broadway, on Sept. 1.
The award-winning building, which opened in 2005, now features a trio of art pieces named “Bamboo,” “Arc of Light & Life” and “Blue Ice.”
Ed Holakiewicz is the associate principal at Carrier Johnson, architect for Advanced Equities Plaza and designer of two of the three art pieces, “Bamboo” and “Blue Ice.”
The art screen called “Bamboo” is featured at the end of India Street. The surreal representation of bamboo, which took four years to complete, is 34 feet high and 32 feet wide and weighs 10,000 to 12,000 pounds. The hanging art was installed in four major pieces and is made of aluminum and tube steel.
The piece is set against a dark background wall to make the art stand out. It also makes the metal appear to subtly change colors throughout the day due to the light reflections.
“Bamboo” is joined by two other art pieces at Advanced Equity Plaza, “Arc of Light & Life” and “Blue Ice,” both completed in 2005. The “Arc of Light & Life,” by Todd Siler, is a massive, multi-colored, mixed-media display in the lobby of the building. The 35-foot-wide, 75-foot-long piece uses synthetic canvas and seven wall-mounted sculptures.
The piece also includes words and poetic phrases.
“Blue Ice,” by Susan Lankford and Holakiewicz, is a series of five towers on the exterior of the building along West Broadway.
With a granite base, these towers stand approximately 8.5 feet high and support an encased chunk of glass waste, which was produced during windshield manufacturing. The glass waste appears as a piece of blue ice when the base lights up at night, shining through the encased glass.
Opening in October 2005, Advanced Equities Plaza is Downtown San Diego’s most luxurious office high-rise and the first class-A office building to come to Downtown since 1991.
The plaza is located at the southeast corner of West Broadway and Kettner Boulevard. The building is within walking distance of the federal and county courts, Horton Plaza, Little Italy, the San Diego Bay and the Civic Center.
Finalists named for civic center redevelopment
A selection committee reviewed proposals from eight prospective development teams and narrowed the list of competitors to four for the possible redevelopment of San Diego’s Civic Center Complex.
The semi-finalist firms who were invited for presentations to the selection committee include: Gerding Edlen of Portland, Ore., Hines of San Diego, Lankford and Associates of San Diego and Thomas Properties Group of Los Angeles.
The development teams were evaluated based on numerous criteria, including relevant experience of the firms and staff, financial capability, commitment to equal opportunity and accomplishments in sustainable design and development.
Following the semi-finalist presentations, the selection committee chose two finalist teams to advance to the next round of competition. The finalists are Gerding Edlen and Hines.
The two finalist firms will participate in a series of public meetings to be held throughout the city to share their prior development experiences and listen to public feedback, questions and ideas.
Final proposals from all firms are currently scheduled to be due in mid-2008. Each finalist will be expected to incorporate ideas and suggestions gained from these public meetings into their submitted proposals. Finalists will also be expected to submit conceptual plans and financial projections in their final proposals.
Selection committee members are Fred Maas, chair of the CCDC board of directors; Barbara Warden, the Downtown San Diego Partnership; Kent Trimble, San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce; William Sauls, Center City Advisory Committee member; Tom Sudberry, Sudberry Properties; David Malmuth, Robert Charles Lesser & Company; Kevin Tilden, San Diego Convention Center Board; and Larry Hoeksema, AIA, Moser Drew Watson & Ferguson.
For questions or further information contact Jeff Graham at (619) 533-7181 or [email protected].