SIDEWALK HARP
JEN LEWIN STUDIO

PROJECT PROFILE:

Artist: Jen Lewin Studio
Title: Sidewalk Harp
Materials: Stainless Steel, Custom LED
Technology Design: Jen Lewin Studio
Structural Fabrication + Installation: Demiurge
Location: Be the Match Registery Headquarters; Minneapolis, MN

Demiurge was thrilled to team up with Jen Lewin Studio a second time to fabricate and install the Sidewalk Harp. Fabricated from three-eights inch stainless steel, laser cut parts this sculpture spans 40 feet while hovering gently over the sidewalk that surrounds the Be The Match Registry headquarters in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 

From Jen Lewin Studio:

Sidewalk Harp is a permanent, outdoor interactive instrument in Minneapolis, Minnesota at the headquarters of the Be The Match Registry.

The Sidewalk Harp is played by passing your body through the 36 sensors capped with LEDs along the bottom of the 40-foot long stainless steel form. Much like plucking the string of a harp, passing through the sensors triggers custom circuitry and sensors to produce musical notes and LED colors. As the community gathers and plays together, they create a symphony of color that washes over the urban landscape. This act of engagement with others is just as much part of the art as the sculpture is itself.

The Be The Match Registry, operated by the nonprofit National Bone Marrow Donor Program, is the world’s largest hematopoietic cell registry, listing more than 10.5 million individuals and nearly 185,000 cord blood units. Hematopoietic cells from NMDP donors or cord blood units are used to transplant patients with a variety of blood, bone marrow or immune system disorders. As of January 2013, the National Bone Marrow Donor Program had facilitated more than 55,000 transplants worldwide.

The Laser Harp Series is an evolution of immersive installations using movement and laser light to trigger sound Jen Lewin has been creating light harps since the mid 1990′s. These harps have varied from art installations, to stage and performance installations and large outdoor sculptures. Sidewalk Harp is the second permanent installation in the series and the first to incorporate LED interactivity.