Public Art Installation Dialogue Lights Up the Alexandra Bridge in Ottawa
News release
OTTAWA, May 16, 2018
Dancing or dreaming? Watching or warning? You decide: a fascinating new public artwork entitled Dialogue, which has just been installed in Ottawa, will invite you to linger over the vista of the Ottawa River and Parliament Hill.
The artwork—created by multidisciplinary artist Florent Cousineau—replaces Zoom on the upper plaza of the Alexandra Bridge. It features two slender, tall shapes reaching for the sky, providing an interesting contrast with the strong horizontal landscape behind it. Although the pure lines of these sculptural forms invite many different interpretations, their arrangement evokes an exchange between two monumental figures. Curves intersect in a movement recalling a pair of witnesses, dancers or sentinels leaning in as they pass one another.
In a special twist, light sources emanating from within the two figures create a fluid, rhythmic dialogue that invites contemplation. See it at twilight or in the evening after a stroll through the ByWard Market in Ottawa or along the river in Gatineau.
Dialogue is exhibited as part of the Art in the Capital program, which adds warmth and vitality to parks, streets and public places in Canada’s Capital Region, while showcasing the talent of Canadian artists.
Quotes
“The Art in the Capital program continues to enhance the experience of living and visiting Canada’s Capital Region. This beautiful installation provides a wonderful place to relax, think and view the incredible vista of Parliament Hill, the Ottawa River and the Canadian Museum of History.”
—The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage
Quick facts
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Dialogue will be on display until May 2020.
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The sculpture is 3.65 metres (12 feet) high and is made out of corten (weathered steel).
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Artist Florent Cousineau, from Québec City, has received many awards for this work: in 2013, he was awarded the Prix Blanche-Lemco-Van-Ginkel for his contribution to the cultural development of the Saint-Roch district, and in 2006 he was presented with the Norman Slater Prize for the integration of a work at the Palais Montcalm that used light and sound to create an experience for viewers.
Associated links
Contacts
For more information (media only), please contact:
Simon Ross
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Canadian Heritage
819-997-7788
Media Relations
Canadian Heritage
819-994-9101
1-866-569-6155
pch.media-media.pch@canada.ca
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