Lumen Eclipse facts for kids
Lumen Eclipse is a special public art gallery located in Harvard Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts. It was created to help more people discover and enjoy art from local, national, and international artists. This gallery is unique because it shows "motion art" – which means video art or moving pictures – on two large screens. These screens are mounted on the Tourism Information Kiosk, right outside the Harvard Square MBTA subway stop. You can see their art displays every day, or you can visit the Lumen Eclipse website to watch them online.
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What is Lumen Eclipse?
Lumen Eclipse started on November 1, 2005, in Harvard Square. It's a unique art gallery that shows moving art, like videos and animations, in public places. They use outdoor video screens, special events, and their website to share art.
How Lumen Eclipse Shows Art
Every month, Lumen Eclipse features about eight new art pieces. Since it began in 2005, it has shown works from over 300 different artists! Some very famous artists have had their work shown here, including Yoko Ono, Michel Gondry, Miranda July, Max Hattler, and Isaac Julien.
Lumen Eclipse also holds special monthly events called "Le Peek". These are smaller screenings held at different places in Cambridge, Massachusetts. They are a great way for artists and people who love art to talk about the works and share ideas.
Interesting Facts About Lumen Eclipse
- In late 2005, the curator Ryan Hovenweep asked Turbulence.org to suggest art for upcoming shows. Two pieces from Turbulence Artists' Studio, "Tenderly Yours" by Peter Horvath and "re_collection" by Michael Takeo Magruder, were shown in December 2005. A piece called "Tap Evol" by Victor Liu, which was a Turbulence.org Commission, was shown in January 2006. These were some of the first times that Internet art was shown as video art in Cambridge.
- The New Museum of Contemporary Art in Manhattan helped Lumen Eclipse by being its first guest curator in February 2006. This means they helped choose the art to be shown that month.
- Lumen Eclipse sometimes asks artists to create new art especially about life in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
- In June 2006, the gallery showed its first interactive exhibit. This special art piece was created by MIT artist Nell Breyer.
- Lumen Eclipse also hosts an annual 1-minute film festival called "Le:60". This festival takes place on Palmer Street in Harvard Square.
Featured Artworks
- One interesting project is "57 Things to do for Free in Harvard Square". This is a collection of 57 short videos. They show funny and simple things you can do for fun in Harvard Square without spending any money. These activities are often silly and could probably be done in any city. The website is set up so you can easily jump to any of the 57 videos from anywhere on the site.
Artists Who Have Been Featured
- DJ Spooky
- Miranda July
- Yoko Ono
- Tore Terrasi
- Mike Mills
- Michel Gondry
- Hexstatic
- Isaac Julien
- William Kentridge
- Janet Biggs
- Aleksandra Domanovic
- Max Hattler
- Martha Colburn
- Takeshi Murata
- Encyclopedia Pictura
