Chicago's iconic Merchandise Mart building is set to play host to the world's largest permanent digital art installation known as Art on theMART. Utilizing 3D architectural mapping, this unique digital art display will illuminate the building's massive facade with 1 million lumens. 34 individual projectors will be used to illuminate the facade, which extends 2.5 acres, along the Chicago River, ensuring artists have plenty of room to work with.
The Art on theMART installation is being supported by Chicago-based architecture firm Valerio Dewalt Train Associates in collaboration with San Francisco-based Obscura Digital. Obscura Digital is perhaps best known for its large-scale projections at the Guggenheim Museum, Sydney Opera House, and the Vatican. The Art on theMART will run for two hours a night, five days a week, and 10 months out of the year.
Why This Trend Is Growing
- Building Facade Art
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Develop advanced technologies and techniques for creating interactive and dynamic art installations on large building facades.
- 3D Architectural Mapping
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Explore the use of 3D architectural mapping to transform buildings into immersive digital canvases, creating new possibilities in advertising, storytelling, and visual experiences.
- Large-scale Digital Projections
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Combine advancements in projection technology with creative content to create captivating large-scale digital projections that can be used for entertainment, marketing, and public art.
Industries Being Reshaped
- Architecture
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Incorporate digital art installations into architectural designs to enhance the aesthetic appeal and experiential value of buildings.
- Entertainment
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Integrate large-scale digital projections into live performances, concerts, and events to create mesmerizing visual spectacles that enhance audience engagement.
- Advertising
- Disruptive innovation opportunity: Utilize large-scale digital projections on building facades as a new avenue for innovative and attention-grabbing outdoor advertising campaigns.
