The Music Center announced the winner of its design competition “ A Cooler Grand Park “ which
asked Los Angeles-based visual artists to submit creative concepts for the inaugural design of a permanent shade structure to be installed in Grand Park’s
Olive Court. This highly trafficked section of the Park
for Everyone, located between Grand Park’s iconic
fountain and the parks Performance Lawn, is often
the site for special events and activities and is home
to weekly food truck visits.
Local artists, Elenita Torres, and Dean Sherriff, developed the design known as Paper Airplane, which
features 11 large overlapping silhouettes of giant
white paper airplanes large enough to shade most
of Olive Court and made of a mesh-like material. The
planes appear to be soaring over the park as they
curve gracefully upwards. According to Torres and
Sherriff, each plane represents one incorporated city
in Los Angeles County, with the design in its entirety
representing the 88 incorporated cities in the County.
Funds for the development and installation of the
structure were provided by the Goldhirsh Foundation’s “ My LA2050 ” Grants Challenge, which
sought creative and innovative solutions to shape a
better Los Angeles. The grant received by The Music
Center will make it possible for Grand Park visitors
to enhance their enjoyment and comfort by gaining
much-needed UV protection while increasing the
park’s potential as the site for performances, exhibitions, and festivals. The competition received 59
submissions. Paper Airplane will be featured in the
park for two years.
The Music Center invited emerging and established
professional Los Angeles visual artists with a minimum of three years experience in the field to submit
designs. Selection was made by a public vote with
input from a selection committee and was based on
design (originality of concept, use of space, skill with
which the artist composes stylistic elements, mastery
of technique and materials, and relevance to Grand
Park’s identity); the artists credentials (education
and training as an artist; awards, critical response,
artist-in-residencies, or other activities demonstrating professional practice); and an interview. All designs were reviewed by the fabricator for feasibility
and practicality. “While we reviewed some incredibly creative concepts, Paper Airplane was the overwhelming favorite, said Grand Park Director Lucas
Rivera. The concepts uniqueness, as well as its ability to capture the dynamic nature of Grand Park and
the spirit and personality of the multiple generations
who enjoy the park, were both powerful and compelling and made Paper Airplane an exciting choice,
he explained.
Torres and Sherriff explain their design reflects the
hopeful nature of Grand Park with a universal concept - the paper airplane that appeals to all ages
and is understandable no matter what language one
speaks. Like the parks emphasis on providing free,
accessible programming, the artists describe the
paper airplane as free to create. In, in this case, the
design, while simplistic in individual form, is complex as a unit, and showcases the motion of flight
and banking to reflect the flow and contours of the
paths within the park. According to Torres and Sherriff’s submission, the movement of taking flight represents the feeling of our spirits being lifted, similar
to the calmness one experiences in Grand Park. All
of the planes are individuals yet flow together, immersing and interacting as one they all fly differently.
Every time you create a paper airplane, you create
a different experience. Some will soar into the sky;
some will dive into the ground, and some will fly further than you ]