City of Evanston -Fire Station #5 Public Art

Fire Station #5 Public Art

Photo of Fire Station Number 5 public art installation

Public Art has been installed at Fire Station #5, located at 2830 Central Street in Evanston (see photos in this section).

Background

The City of Evanston has replaced the existing Fire Station #5 with a new, state-of-the-art two-story structure. Building materials were selected to blend in with existing buildings on Central Street, primarily red brick, terra cotta tile, and glass. This new construction was designed to be LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certified, meeting consensus-based national standards for developing high-performance, sustainable buildings. Green aspects of the building include a wall for vines and storm water collection and reuse for washing trucks. The site of the new building has a limited setback area from the street, which impacted the type of project that would be appropriate for the site.

Public art panel with green lighting Public art photograph with blue lighting

The winning plan was submitted by Robert Smart. His plan is outlined below.

Emitting Waves
by Robert Smart, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Materials: Glass and acrylic LED panels

As an essential element known to all forms of life, water, when used respectfully, helps maintain a balance between the earth, wind, and fire. A series of glass and cell-cast acrylic panels will be carved with images depicting the flow of water. Viewed from both the interior and exterior of the building, the images will appear to "float" as they will be lit internally by low-voltage, computer programmable, light-emitting diodes. Providing light refraction and focused edge-illumination, subtle transitions in light within each panel will create "breathing" movement, emulating the flow of water.

Click to enlarge

<< back