BAM/Robert W. Wilson Public Art Initiative Announces Artist Commissions

The BAM/Robert W. Wilson Public Art Initiative, made possible by a $3.5MM gift from the Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust, announces three artists commissioned to create site-specific works on the BAM campus-Teresita Fernández, Leo Villareal, and Hank Willis Thomas.

Teresita Fernández's large-scale sculptural form, Paradise Parados, is designed for the outdoor terrace atop the new Rudin Family Gallery at BAM Strong.

Leo Villareal's LED sculpture, Light Matrix, will fill the third-story windows of the BAM Fisher, and Villareal's Volume (BAM), a large scale light installation, will be mounted in the soon-to-be-constructed BAM Karen spaces at 300 Ashland Place.

With an ongoing investment in the framing of history through the use of archival material, Hank Willis Thomas will create an original work for the rear wall of BAM's Peter Jay Sharp Building, facing BAM Fisher, as a way to examine the site's specific history and highlight how the past continues to be present.

An existing work by Villareal, Stars, which animates the arched façade windows of BAM's Peter Jay Sharp Building, also becomes part of the BAM/Robert W. Wilson Public Art initiative. One additional artist commission will be awarded for the creation of site-specific works on the BAM campus. Together these six works of art will serve to define and connect the institution's venues and bring new public art to its vibrant community.

BAM President Katy Clark said, "This is a dynamic period for BAM in the visual arts, including the addition of our first dedicated exhibition space, The Rudin Family Gallery. Commissioning public art by three artists forging exciting new paths underscores our commitment to the visual arts and celebrates the breadth of our organization. We are delighted to welcome two new pieces by Leo Villareal-whose work with light and digital coding has already brought us his iconic Stars. We look forward to commissioning our first work by Brooklyn resident Teresita Fernández, whose use of materials will provide a signature, interactive work for the new terrace at BAM Strong, as well as our first work by Hank Willis Thomas, an artist with a unique vision and a singular approach to the commission process. We are grateful to the Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust for creating this exciting opportunity for BAM and its community."

Richard G. Schneidman, a trustee of the Trust, added, "Robert W. Wilson was deeply committed to the performing and visual arts and so this gift to BAM is especially meaningful to the Trust. We are thrilled to see these important contemporary art commissions come to life on the BAM campus as part of the BAM/Robert W. Wilson Public Art Initiative. We feel the art will both delineate and unify the campus as it realizes the vision of Robert W. Wilson."