Sep 2024
NYC billboard and animation design commissioned by Jeffrey Gibson for NYC Climate Week).
In September 2024, Indigenous American artist Jeffrey Gibson launched a public art project across major U.S. cities, including numerous New York City landmarks. This initiative coincided with Climate Week and the artist’s representation of the United States at the Venice Biennale.
The project centered on the artist’s signature style: vibrant color and typographic engagement. We began by translating twenty radial color gradient sketches made by the artist into continuously looping background animations, forming the visual foundation for the projections. These dynamic backdrops were designed to host the artist’s original poem, “The Spirits Are Laughing,” a dialogue between five anthropomorphized entities: The Animals, The Sky, The Land, The Water, and The People. This poem underscores the vitality of nature and the urgency of addressing climate change.
The project centered on the artist’s signature style: vibrant color and typographic engagement. We began by translating twenty radial color gradient sketches made by the artist into continuously looping background animations, forming the visual foundation for the projections. These dynamic backdrops were designed to host the artist’s original poem, “The Spirits Are Laughing,” a dialogue between five anthropomorphized entities: The Animals, The Sky, The Land, The Water, and The People. This poem underscores the vitality of nature and the urgency of addressing climate change.
Initially, we considered using the artist’s own handwriting in the animations. However, prioritizing broad legibility, we decided instead to use a sans-serif typeface the artist himself
designed. We used this font for the high-contrast white text, with each entity’s name consistently positioned at the top, and their respective lines gracefully fading in and out below. We integrated an additional subtle “wiggling” effect on the text to imbue the words with a sense of movement and vitality.
Next, we incorporated five of the artist’s original patterns incorporated into the background. I converted these designs into vectors and then After Effects masks, overlaying them onto the animations with a slight delay. This technique ensured that the colors remained rich and the patterns emerged as a delicate, yet impactful, layer of contrast.
This project demanded optimization for diverse display resolutions and animation durations, so I made sure to carefully calibrate text and background transitions to maintain optimal readability. Despite the demanding three-week timeline, the collaborative effort culminated in a successful and impactful public art installation, garnering press coverage from publications such as Hyperallergic and Artsy.
Next, we incorporated five of the artist’s original patterns incorporated into the background. I converted these designs into vectors and then After Effects masks, overlaying them onto the animations with a slight delay. This technique ensured that the colors remained rich and the patterns emerged as a delicate, yet impactful, layer of contrast.
This project demanded optimization for diverse display resolutions and animation durations, so I made sure to carefully calibrate text and background transitions to maintain optimal readability. Despite the demanding three-week timeline, the collaborative effort culminated in a successful and impactful public art installation, garnering press coverage from publications such as Hyperallergic and Artsy.