Motion’s Moment, 2012
Barrhaven South Recreational Complex, Ottawa. 3954 sq/ft (376.57 sq. meters of art glass), laser etching and airbrushed enamels.
Motion’s Moment captures three states of water as each shifts form and texture. The art is a metaphor for the dynamic state of motion at the heart of the Barrhaven South Recreational Complex.
The inspiration for Motion’s Moment came after watching underwater videos of Michael Phelps diving into a swimming pool. The curling waves and foam as he moved through the water were an expression of energy and grace. Images from underwater video stills are assembled for the glass on the North Entrance. Watching skaters etching arcs into the ice surface was like watching a drawing that reflected the structure of the ice itself. These crystal structures are seen on the South Entrance windows. Gymnasts who appear to defy gravity as they float and land as if their bodies were weightless were the inspiration for clouds and the airy lightness of the sky images on the gym windows.
Motion’s Moment suggests the forms and energies the participants bring to the complex. The interaction of light with the glass art animates the color and image. The art is as dynamic as the activities within the building. It changes with the light of the day and the changing seasons, filtering the light and projecting images onto the floor so it exists beyond the physical boundaries of the glass curtain wall. Yet all the while 50% of the window is remains clear so the transparency that is central to the building design is respected and people can easily see out of or into the building through the art.
Even in the dull grey winter, the delicate colour of the glass painting in Motion’s Moment subtly enriches the environment. At night the images at the entrances glow, beckoning swimmers, skaters and others to the Complex. The underwater waves on the North Entrance and the frost on the South Entrance reflect the seasons of summer and winter. At all times there is a sense of a world that is not fixed or static but in a constant state of evolution, of change.
