‘Contemporary Reality’ Envelopes Hirshhorn During New Doug Aitken Video Art Installation!

NATIONAL MALL -- In perhaps its most ambitious project since director Richard Koshalek took the reins of the venerable institution in April 2009, the Hirshhorn will unveil a groundbreaking new cinematic art installation by American artist Doug Aitken at sundown on Thursday.

Dubbed ‘SONG 1’, the museum’s latest commission will see its bulbous exterior enveloped in a newly constructed display of “liquid architecture” that will be the first-ever work of 360-degree convex-screen cinema.

Soon to be designated a part of the Hirshhorn’s permanent collection, ‘SONG 1’ was designed by Aitken as “a reflection of contemporary reality” that alters the relationship to on-lookers between the museum building and its surrounding urban environment.

Through the projected video imagery emanating from 11 high definition outdoor projectors, the structure of the Hirshhorn is intended to rotate, rise, and evolve into new forms, as it both draws focus and recedes into the background of the National Mall.

The soundscape created by ‘SONG 1’ is just as important as its visual component, with the work audibly grounded in the lyrics of “I Only Have Eyes For You”. A handful of well known musicians (most notably Beck) recorded dozens of versions of the 1934-era pop song in order to emphasize its universality.

‘SONG 1’ was conceived by Aitken as a fluid experience. In order to experience the work in its totality, visitors to the Hirshhorn are encouraged to walk around the exterior of the Hirshhorn as it is intentionally impossible to see the entire display from any single vantage point.

The installation will be on display from March 22, 2012 to May 13, 2012 at the Hirshhorn, from sunset until midnight. Circular logic has never before seen such praise!