Reflection 2: The Summit
New York in itself is the ultimate immersive artwork. One can only really experience it from inside and at sidewalk level, where one picks their way through a fragmented, constantly shifting field of vision populated by extras and enriched by a randomized landscape. The only reason supertall buildings keep getting erected is that they offer aerial perspectives on their habitats and those spectacular sunset views. The real thing looks unreal at this height; an array of toy skyscrapers, pastel rivers, pinprick traffic lights, Central Park the size of a welcome mat, and some nature in the hazy distance. Look carefully, and you shall find a small hill on the west. From 1,000 feet up, the city feels like a giant model on an architect’s work table, containing a vastness of apparatus working in conjunction with life and drama, but even so, an astounding thing. During my visit, I realized that The summit is not like the other observatories; in fact, it’s not an observatory. It’s an experience in itself, an immersive one, and t certainly feels like an art installation.
The elevator ride. This also is a scary experience as it shakes and rattles as it reaches 91 floors above the ground. Of course, it’s on purpose; you enter a large room and stand on a mirrored floor beneath a mirrored ceiling, catching repetitive glimpses of yourself in mirrored walls. It could almost be one of Yayoi Kusama’s famous Infinity Mirror Rooms may be only a little less mind-bending. In a separate space, an array of shiny metal blobs scattered across the floor turns out to be a real Kusama (Clouds), or chrome kidneys, if I may. Silver balloons fill yet another room, wafting on updrafts, crowding your field of vision, and recalling Andy Warhol’s Silver Clouds.
During my visit, the most connected experience was the Air, Created by Kenzo Digital. Kenzo is an artist who creates emotionally powerful, mind-bending alternate worlds in physical and virtual spaces. He compounds art, film, theater, and architecture elements to produce groundbreaking work that upends your sensory experience in service of the story. His goal is not just to entertain or excite but to engage in ways that create memories of lasting meaning.
Air is a walkthrough art experience with three sides of mirrors, including the floor and ceiling, distorting the cityscape and immersing guests within it simultaneously. One can say that it is a walkthrough art experience that begins after entering SUMMIT One Vanderbilt. Once atop the building, Air Exhibit offers a multi-floor, multi-space immersion that challenges your notions of physical reality, the city surrounding them, and their sense of self. One can say that It is a story of both literal and figurative reflection. Through the use of glass mirrors on every structural surface, the whole structure appears boundless, without fixed form, and offers a compelling and rare experience for each visitor at each moment. With everything mirrored, each step rearranges what visitors see with incredible complexity and computation, as if in defiance of physics.
In this class, we have talked about creativity and methods to nurture creativity in our professional life and in general, such as seeking new perspectives and finding new opportunities. The Air exhibit at The Summit could be an excellent example of how creative thinking can help in generating your USPs and makes you stand out from the competition.
