The Seattle Public Library board of trustees has selected glass and metal artist Dana Lynn Louis to design artwork for the new Northgate Branch of The Seattle Public Library. The board made its unanimous decision at its June 18 meeting.
The seven-member Northgate Art Panel recommended Louis for the job after interviewing three finalists. The panel said it was impressed with Louis’ colorful, vibrant work, which is approachable for people of all ages and nationalities. The panel was made up of the project architect, a community member, and staff members from the Library, Seattle Parks and Recreation and the Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs.
The Portland-based artist’s work includes large-scale outdoor work, indoor installations, individual objects, drawings and prints.
Louis will work with the Library and the architects, The Miller/Hull Partnership, to produce a piece of art that creates a sense of place for the new branch. It has not yet been determined whether the piece will be placed inside or outside.
Examples of Louis’ work include ceramic and glass tiles and glass vessels that she created for the men’s and women’s restrooms at the Portland Convention Center, a kaleidoscopic glass drawing for the façade of the new facility at Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma and a glass and metal wall in a fire station in Portland.
The Office of Arts & Cultural Affairs, the city agency that promotes the value of arts and culture in and of communities throughout Seattle, manages the Library’s public art program. Arts & Cultural Affairs is supported by the 15-member Seattle Arts Commission, citizen volunteers appointed by the mayor and City Council.
The Northgate project includes a 10,000-square-foot library, a 20,000-square-foot community center and a 1.67-acre park on the site of the Goodyear store (the former Bon Tire Center) at Fifth Avenue Northeast and Northeast 105th Street and the commercial site one block north. The Library is collaborating on the project with Seattle Parks and Recreation. A separate artist, Nikki McClure, has been chosen to design artwork for the community center.
The new Northgate Branch is part of the $196.4 million “Libraries for All” bond measure that Seattle voters passed in 1998. The bond money, which can be used only for construction of libraries, will fund improvements to all 22 branches, build five new branches and build the new central library.
The $5,337,075 Northgate Branch will include a new collection with a capacity of 40,200 books and materials, reading and homework areas for children and youth, computers, instruction areas, and a meeting room. The new branch is expected to be completed in 2005. At the April 29 meeting, the Library Board revised the budget for capital costs for the branch from $5,139,000 to $5,337,075 to account for inflation.
To date, the Library has completed the Capitol Hill, Delridge, NewHolly and Wallingford branches. The Central Library and the Beacon Hill, Green Lake, High Point, North East, Rainier Beach and West Seattle branches are currently in the construction phase and planning and design is underway for many other branches.
The Seattle Public Library Foundation is in the midst of a “Campaign for Seattle’s Public Libraries” with the goal of raising $77.5 million from private sources to enhance the public bond commitment. Every dollar raised will ensure the library system reflects our community’s needs in buildings, books, technology and people, long into the future. For more information about “Libraries for All” or the Foundation, visit the Library’s Web site at www.spl.org.
(For more information, call Caroline Young Ullmann, communications assistant, at 206-615-1627.)
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Content modified: 26 June 2003
12/30/2005
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