Spielschiff (Play Ship)
Maury Park, Adjacent to the Arlington Arts Center
3550 Wilson Boulevard. 703-228-3771

Arlington welcomes its newest permanent public art project, Spielschiff (Play Ship in German), installed in Maury Park, adjacent to the Arlington Arts Center.

German artist Bonifatius Stirnberg created this interactive, two-level play sculpture with parts that can be repositioned, swiveled, peered through and climbed upon. Children can command this magical nautical vessel from the lower level's revolving hull or the crow's next, which is equipped with kaleidoscopes and a weathervane.

Stirnberg recast Spielschiff from molds he used in 1979 to create the original piece for Aachen, Arlington's sister city in Germany. A medallion on the upper level is cast with the word Arlington on one side and Oche (Aachen in dialect) on the other, representing the sister-cities relationship. The sculpture was realized through a partnership with Aachen and Arlington's Sister Cities associations, and developed as part of Planet Arlington, a series of activities that explore issues of globalization, immigration and the environment through the lens of the arts and humanities.
 

Arlington County Presents Innovative Solar-Powered Art
June 7 - September 1, 2007 : Traffic Island adjacent to Dark Star Park in Rosslyn
August 2007 - Present:  Crystal City at Route 1 and Crystal Drive

This summer, Arlington County presented an environmental public artwork at two locations in Arlington County, created by artists Jack Sanders, Robert Gay, and Butch Anthony. The installations, entitled CO2LED, were erected in June at the traffic island at Ft. Myer Drive, North Lynn Street, and North Fairfax Drive, and at the "southern gateway" to Crystal City at the intersection of Route 1 and Crystal Drive. The art in Rosslyn will be on display through Labor Day, and is presented in coordination with the second annual Planet Arlington World Music Festival, held on September 1, 2007 at the Netherlands Carillon/Iwo Jima Memorial grounds. The Crystal City art remains on display.
See the artists' CO2LED website for more photographs and information.

CO2LED is designed to promote the use of alternative energy sources and recycling, as part of Arlington's environmental initiative, FreshAIRE (Arlington Initiative to Reduce Emissions). At each site, the artists will erect hundreds of solar-powered LEDs (light-emitting diodes) secured to rods topped with reused plastic bottles. They will create a soft, undulating cloud of light. A native American prairie grass, little bluestem, will be planted beneath the poles. At the exhibition's conclusion, the plants will be transplanted to sites throughout the County, and all project materials will be recycled.

Each installation will demonstrate that using  energy-efficient, solar-powered LEDs instead of conventional incandescent bulbs can reduce emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), a global warming gas. Being solar-powered, CO2LED will produce long-lasting illumination that is free of toxic by-products. The team collaborated with local solar-power supplier Jody Solell of Solar Electrics.   CO2LED was developed in conjunction with Planet Arlington, a year-round cultural programming initiative designed to explore issues of immigration, globalization and the environment via the arts. It is sponsored by Arlington Cultural Affairs.
More Information
 

NEW!  
Arlington Introduces a new visual art tour for cyclists!

Arlington's bicycle map now includes a tour that takes cyclists to 21 visual arts destinations! The loop goes by works from Arlington's public art collection as well as two of Arlington's art galleries, the Ellipse Arts Center and the Arlington Arts Center. This hilly ride begins and ends at the Ellipse Arts Center in Ballston.

Download the visual bike tour map, or if you would like one sent to you, email Paul DeMaio, or call him at 703-228-5027. They are also available at Arlington Commuter Stores. Download Arlington's bicycle map.


Pictured: Ellipse Arts Center director, Cynthia Connolly, takes a break after shopping at the Courthouse farmer's market to look at Kendall Buster's sculpture in Verizon Plaza, one of the artworks on the Visual Art Tour.
 

Nancy Holt Dark Star Park 1984, restored 2003 1655 N. Fort Myer Drive, Arlington, VA 22209 Rosslyn Metro Approx. 29,000 sq. ft. gunite, steel, water and plantings of winter creeper and willow oak Download the Dark Star Park Brochure

Ned Kahn Liquid Pixels 2002 1801 N. Lynn Street, Arlington, VA. 22209 Rosslyn Metro six panels 42' X 25' brushed stainless steel

Photo: Jason Horowitz Kendall Buster Untitled 2000 Verizon Plaza, 1320 N. Courthouse Road, Arlington, VA 22201 Courthouse Metro 10' x 10' x 10' welded bronze rods

Louis Comfort Tiffany Studios Untitled early 1930's (restored 2004) Arlington Arts Center 3550 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22203 Virginia Square Metro leaded stained glass

Jackie Ferrara and M. Paul Friedberg Untitled 2004 Arlington Gateway, 901 N. Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 22203 Ballston Metro pavers, slate, brick, granite, steel, water, landscape elements

Jann Rosen-Queralt Cultivus Loci: Suckahanna 2004 Powhatan Springs Park, 6020 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22205 Corten steel, jade river pebbles, copper, concrete

Winnie Owens-Hart with ArtsWork apprentices Jeffrey Augustine, Tristan Benjamin, Marie Cosgrove-Davies, Alexandra Krafchek, Delanta Neal, Julia Siple and Jeannette Yue The Family and Memory Bricks 2004 Lee Highway between N. Cameron and N. Dinwiddie Streets, Arlington, VA 22207 The Family: powder-coated steel Memory Bricks:  terra cotta

Sam Christian Holmes Standing at the Crossroads: Freedman's Village Gate 1997 The courtyard of Theatre Two at Gunston, Arlington, VA 22206 8 units of steel fence, each 6' x 5' steel and tin

Butch Anthony Bike Oasis - Arlington 2006 NW corner of 19th and N. Moore Streets, Arlington, VA 22209 Rosslyn Metro steel, baling wire, bicycle parts, road signs, metal scraps

Photos by Erwin Redl Erwin Redl Flow 2006 Shirlington Branch Library, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 2006 LED installation

Martha Jackson-Jarvis Down Stream 2006 Shirlington Plaza, 4200 Campbell Avenue, Arlington, VA 2006 mosaic fountain treatment
Brad Morton We the People 2006 2727 South Quincy Street, Arlington, VA 22206 bronze
Graham Caldwell Up and Down 2006 2200 North Westmoreland Street, Arlington, VA 22213 concrete, steel, raw sienna/buff pigment, paint

Photos by Hilary Regan Ray King Flame 2006 950 N. Glebe Road, Arlington, VA 22203 Ballston Metro glass, dichroic glass, laminated film, stainless steel cables and rods

---