ARTISTIC FACADE CASE STUDY

Photos: © Jeremy Green

Project: Los Angeles Opens Its Heart of Compassion
Location: The Vermont, Koreatown, Los Angeles
Artist: Cliff Garten
Real Estate Developer: J.H. Snyder Co.
General Contractor: Plas-Tal
Engineer: CKC Structural Engineers
Subcontractor: Metal Arts Foundry; Cascade Coil

The Project: The Vermont is one of the largest residential projects to be built in Los Angeles since the beginning of the last real estate downturn, according to local developer J.H. Snyder Co. The project has 464 apartments in two towers: one 29 stories tall and the other 23 stories. The two towers stand atop a seven-story complex containing stores, restaurants, and parking. This luxury property exudes a level of opulence with an expansive lobby, a fully equipped gym, and a 100-foot-long rooftop swimming pool in a garden setting that includes a dog run. A characteristic, artistic feature of The Vermont is its $1.6-million chandelier installed in the front of the building in the shape of a lotus blossom. In concert with 24-hour doormen, these features give this residential complex the air of a high-end hotel. “We really wanted to get a Four Seasons feel to it,” says Jerome H. Snyder, senior partner of J.H. Snyder Co., whose firm spent more than $200 million building The Vermont.

The Artist: Cliff Garten is an internationally recognized sculptor and founder of Cliff Garten Studio in Venice, California. According to his website: “By connecting people to places and infrastructure through sculptural material, social history, and ecology, Garten's work locates the latent potential in every public place and situation to become more than the specific functions it appears to perform. Sculpture defines our interaction and movement by creating energy between things, generating interest in public activity, reframing our private lives, and creating a sense of place within public and private realms.” Cliff Garten received a Master of Fine Arts in Sculpture from the Rhode Island School of Design and a Master of Landscape Architecture with Distinction from the Harvard Graduate School of Design.

The Artistic Work: The Heart of Compassion artwork is located in the heart of Koreatown in Los Angeles. The suspended sculpture is comprised of several distinct components. First, a 75-foot-long x 45-foot-tall diaphanous, undulating screen of coiled wire fabric covers floors 2 through 6 of the parking structure situated between the two towers of The Vermont. In front of the wire fabric, a 20-foot-tall, three-dimensional sculpture is suspended, consisting of 100 petal-like abstractions of a lotus flower made of laser-cut aluminum. The abstraction of the lotus blossom, which is a recurrent theme in Korean art, connects the building to the unique history of the Koreatown neighborhood and provides a meaningful symbol through the use of contemporary materials and light. The motif of the lotus is carried through the plaza in etched glass panels that line the public staircase leading from the plaza to the second-floor balcony overlooking Wilshire Boulevard.

To create the complete, dynamic effect, the entire sculpture uses LED lighting to bathe the lotus flower portion in an intense white light while the screen and corresponding linear elements are engaged in a light show of rich, changing colors. The color of the electric lighting captured by the curving screen deepens depending on the amount of available natural daylight. The overall effect is of an ever-changing facade that combines cultural symbolism, metallic materials, LED lighting, electronic controls, and artistic talent to create a dramatic and colorful centerpiece for the building complex.

View a time-lapse video of the sculpture's installation and illumination.

The Results: The two residential towers of the Vermont are cleverly and beautifully joined by the illuminated sculpture titled “Los Angeles Opens Its Heart of Compassion.” Not only does it help create a sense of place for the facility, but it also turns an otherwise mundane parking garage facade into a vibrant, unique feature that sets this residential project apart from others in the area. The use of coiled wire fabric made the work possible both as an artistic medium and as a durable, functional material that will hold up over time.