Artist
Urs Fischer, courtesy of the Gagosian Gallery
Architect
Studio Cicetti
Big Clay #4 is a work by the Swiss artist Urs Fischer which was installed in the Seagram’s building plaza for 6 months in the summer and fall of 2015. The lighting design was remarkably effective, providing a number of effects. The sculpture is bathed in a cooler white light, which helps it stand out from the Seagram’s building in the background. The artist preferred the more realistic effect of the toplight, which is suggestive of moonlight. The intensity of light is well-balanced with the surrounding cityscape. The plaza is ordinarily dark, relying on spill light from the lobby, the adjacent streetlights, and the two fountains. Spill light from the spotlights is remarkably well controlled. The sculpture occupied a prominent location on Park Avenue, and was visible for more than ½ mile in either direction.
