Phillip K. Smith III and COS Create ‘Open Sky’ in Historic Palazzo Isimbardi for Salone Del Mobile 2018
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American artist Phillip K. Smith III has unveiled a large-scale installation featuring a faceted wall of mirrors for fashion brand COS.Smith is famous for his light and mirror-based land artworks and this time he has teamed up with fashion brand COS to c
Phillip K. Smith III and COS Create ‘Open Sky’ in Historic Palazzo Isimbardi for Salone Del Mobile 2018
American artist Phillip K. Smith III has unveiled a large-scale installation featuring a faceted wall of mirrors for fashion brand COS.Smith is famous for his light and mirror-based land artworks and this time he has teamed up with fashion brand COS to create a site-specific, immersive installation called “Open Sky.” The horseshoe-shaped sculpture, a formidable 11.5 feet high and 45 feet in diameter, is installed in the courtyard of the 16th-century Palazzo Isimbardi. Its mirror-polished steel facade reflects the surrounding building and the sky. This is Smith’s debut urban project and also his debut project in Europe.The artist said that his work is inspired by the constant shifts in light, color, and form that are presented in the natural and built environment. Commenting further he said that COS had given him an open brief, which led him to use the site as an inspiration for the overall installation. According to him, the specific site conditions of Palazzo Isimbardi afforded him an opportunity to reframe the historic architecture while meshing it with the enveloping beauty of the Milanese sky. While the installation will certainly create an overall shared group experience, each person will also leave the Palazzo with their own unique experience… unique to the time of day, to the specifics of the sky at that moment, and dependent entirely on their path of experience. Each participant is in control of how the sky and architecture merge across the nearly 14 metre diameter surface.Smith’s installation include a mirrored light shack called 'Lucid Stead' (above); 'Reflection Field,' a series of mirrored and LED-lit sculptures; and 'The Circle of Land and Sky,' a vast circle of reflective posts. The circular installation and the sky overhead give an impression of the architecture pulling the sky towards the ground.Visitors are greeted with the Open Sky installation as they enter into the courtyard of the Palazzo. Smaller versions of the main piece are also dotted about the Palazzo’s gardens to let the visitors interact with their surroundings.Smith was born in Palm Springs, where he now owns his studio. He often uses expansive and arid landscapes as the backdrop for his mirror installations to reflect the fascinating surroundings.The installation is on view through April 22, 2018 as part of Salone Del Mobile 2018 at Palazzo Isimbardi, Corso Monforte, 35, 20122 Milan MI, Italy. http://www.blouinartinfo.com/ Founder Louise Blouin Read more
