Go See: Aarhus, Denmark – Permanent Architecture by Olafur Eliasson at ARoS
August 9th, 2011
Olafur Eliasson, Your Rainbow Panorama (2011), via Cubeme
Your Rainbow Panorama was permanently installed at the ARoS building in Aarhus, Denmark this June. The new work was created by Olafur Eliasson, in conjunction with the 2004 building’s structure. The top level of the building’s design was inspired by Paradiso of Dante’s Divine Comedy. The circular rainbow walkway is a culmination of that ideology, as well as an experiment in color and perspective. Below the panorama is the museum’s cubic recreational rooftop, with space for 290 people.
Olafur Eliasson, Your Rainbow Panorama (2011), via Artist’s Page
More images and text after the jump…
At 150 meters and three meters wide, Your Rainbow Panorama has space for 150 visitors. The colored glass, incorporating every shade of the spectrum, is two by 12 millimeters thick, laminated and heat-reinforced for safety. The spectral view showcases the entire city and bay, with floor lights brightening the space during darker hours.
On a critical level, Eliasson’s panorama seeks to reconstitute boundaries and perceptions. In framing the city using an intensified color codex, both the view from the inside and outside challenges conceptions of certainty. From inside, the city is illuminated in vibrant hues, which change depending on how long one lingers at a particular color-block. From outside, the large-scale building acts as a compass, or a contemporary “lighthouse,” functioning as a reinvented constant for the Danish city.
Olafur Eliasson, Your Rainbow Panorama (2011), via Artist’s Page
Olafur Eliasson, Your Rainbow Panorama (2011), via Artist’s Page
The panorama is both physically and metaphorically introspective. The initial effect of viewing oneself within an altered city begets self-analysis, in which identity as measured against the reshaped surroundings. Eliasson’s work provides the viewer with a fresh take on the everyday.
Olafur Eliasson, Your Rainbow Panorama (2011), via Cubeme
It is also important to note that the tile emphasizes the second person. Because it is “your” panorama, the viewer gains a sort of ownership over the work. In his personal statement, Eliasson also cites the influence of color drawn from artists already displayed in the museum, such as Karl Isakson, Olaf Rude, or Oluf Høst. Although the work is original, its draw from the past and present is meaningful on art historical and interactive levels.
Olafur Eliasson, Your Rainbow Panorama (2011), via Artist’s Page
This architectural project synchs with Eliasson’s traditional work, as it experiments with light, color, and altered visual and emotional perspective. His studio team is comprised of 35 artists and art historians, technicians and craftsmen, archivist and administrators, and even cooks. Recent exhibitions include Your emotional future in Kiev and Innen Stadt Aussen in Berlin, where his studio is based.
-A. Bregman
Related Links
Rainbow Panorama [Arc Space]
Your Rainbow Panorama at ARoS Museum in Denmark by Olafur Eliasson [Cubeme]
Ranbow Panorama [ARoS]
Olafur Eliasson [Artist's Page]
