Parkline Place reveals spectacular Tomás Saraceno artwork
Sydney is set to attract the attention of the local and international art world with the spectacular sculptural artwork, “The Seeds of Flight” by Tomás Saraceno, his first permanent public artwork in Australia.
This important piece by the world-renowned artist was commissioned for Parkline Place, the new landmark commercial building above Gadigal Station, that is co-owned by Oxford Properties Group (‘Oxford’) and Mitsubishi Estate Asia (‘MEA’), developed and managed by Investa and designed by Foster + Partners.
“The Seeds of Flight” is a series of deep hued, flying sculptures suspended in the cavernous, triple-height lobby of Parkline Place, gracefully floating in mid-air. The artwork weaves together Saraceno’s enduring fascination with alternative flight methods, with his deep commitment to biodiversity. It is composed of 116 modular tetrahedrons, assembled in 15 flying sculptures of variable dimensions rising 18 metres tall and stretching 38 metres in length, made of cotton fabric like those used for sails, and suspended on carbon fibre frames connected by aluminium nodes.
Its colours are drawn from the palette of the eucalyptus tree with deep golds, fiery oranges, and rich, earthen reds. Light alters these hues, making them seem to shimmer at sunrise, vibrate at noon, or glow with warmth at sunset, echoing the way young eucalyptus leaves mature into richer, more intense shades over time. In this ever-renewing rhythm of transformation, the artwork’s colours become a living language, entwined with the changing atmosphere.
Visible from the future Town Hall Square through the floor to ceiling glass windows of the podium, the artwork is expected to attract people at all times of day and night, providing another memorable Sydney experience, and acting as a major meeting and gathering place in the city.
“The Seeds of Flight” will be experienced and enjoyed by tenants and their visitors, as well as local and international tourists, art lovers and novices, scientists, engineers and more who will come to view not only its awe-inspiring scale – standing among the most sizable public artworks in Sydney – but also to reflect on its call to reimagine the relationship with air and, like leaves, attune to the rhythms of the planet and currents of the wind.
Parkline Place owners Oxford and MEA commissioned the artwork as a significant public art installation that would seamlessly integrate with the design of the building and the purpose-built exhibition-style space of the grand lobby. The artwork took over two years to design and produce, following a 13-month selection process managed by Investa with leading art curator Barbara Flynn, that attracted submissions from 30 renowned artists from Australia and 12 other nations.
Peter Menegazzo, CEO, Investa said, “We are thrilled to reveal “The Seeds of Flight” to our Parkline Place tenants and the general public.
“Parkline Place was conceived from the very beginning of the project, as much more than a striking new landmark on the city skyline. The next generation workplaces, fantastic retail spaces and offerings, and now a truly unique permanent artwork performing a key role in the public life of the building, are all coming together to make Parkline Place an exciting new destination in the Sydney CBD.”
Tomás Saraceno, Artist said, “I am deeply grateful to all who have lifted up “The Seeds of Flight” – an artwork that drifts along the rivers of the wind, suspended like stars and planets carrying constellations of life’s seeds through the universe. Together in diverse latent states of encounter, the artwork attempts to remind us that we are all on-board this Mother Earth. Together with spores, spiders, birds, eucalyptus trees, can humans also float freely, without lithium or fossil fuels? In the interest of the trillions of inhabitants who would like to keep journeying around the sun, might we choose orbits of solidarity over extraction?”
“The Seeds of Flight” can be viewed inside the lobby of Parkline Place, 252 Pitt Street, during standard office hours, 7:30am – 5.00pm Monday to Friday.
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Read more in the Sydney Morning Herald: Tomás Saraceno: Artist unveils Seeds of Flight installation in Sydney
Fabrication: Studio Tomas Saraceno
Curation: Barabara Flynn
Installation: Event Engineering Australia
Photography: Mark Pokorny, Aaron Hargreaves
