Louisville Visual Art (LVA) has announced plans to unveil a public installation this summer. Haddad | Drugan, a collaboration between Seattle-based artists Laura Haddad and Tom Drugan, will install a large scale, mixed media work entitled “SPARK” on the exterior of LVA’s building at 1538 Lytle St. in the Portland neighborhood. The project will be funded by the Robert W. Rounsavall, Jr. Family Foundation.
S-P-A-R-K stands for “Student and Professional Art Resources and Knowledge,” which is emblematic of LVA’s organizational purpose. Bright metal elements will be installed above the roofline and augmented by lighted rods that will change color in programmed sequences. The installation is being created in the hope that it will become a landmark in the Portland neighborhood.
At its thematic core, “SPARK” is about collaboration and community-building. The installation will incorporate numerous icons designed by anyone who wishes to participate. Submission guidelines along with a detailed explanation of how the icons will function can be found on the LVA’s website.
The Rounsavall Family Foundation is a donor-advised fund at the Community Foundation of Louisville. The foundation is “proud to support LVA in this extraordinary public art statement in the Portland neighborhood of Louisville,” says Gretchen R. Clark, daughter of the late Robert W. Rounsavall, Jr. “Haddad | Drugan has captured the spirit of LVA’s 115-year influence in youth art education and the journey of so many emerging artists in the Louisville regional area.”
The public unveiling of “SPARK” is scheduled for late summer 2024.
