Dan Corson (born 1964) is an artist living in
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
and is a former member of the Seattle Arts Commission. He works in the field of
public art
Public art is art in any media whose form, function and meaning are created for the general public through a public process. It is a specific art genre with its own professional and critical discourse. Public art is visually and physically acce ...
, creating large-scale, concept-driven works installed in urban environments including in parks, railway stations, art galleries, meditation chambers, at intersections, under freeways, and on sidewalks. His approach is a mixture of sculpture, installation, theatrical design, architecture, and landscape design. Media include metal, glass, concrete, fiberglass, gravel, LEDs, lasers, neon, solar panels, radar detectors, photo-voltaic cells, infrared cameras, motors, searchlights, and occasionally elements such as fire, water, and smoke.
[ His work frequently incorporates cutting-edge technology in lighting, sound, and other electronic media.][City of Santa Monica Cultural Affairs - Digital Divide by Dan Corson, Digital Divide]
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Career
Corson served as the first Artist-in-Residence for the City of Seattle's "% for Arts program" in 2001.[ His work is often interactive and incorporates elements such as photoelectric switches which the spectator can trigger and cause the artwork to respond.][ Typical is ''Emerald Aura'' a temporary laser sculpture in ]Memphis Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...
that used Infrared cameras and surveillance software to track pedestrians and project the processed computer generated images back onto the people in real time. This installation is typical of Corson’s work in the way that it combine artistic expression with an implied statement about our culture.[UrbanArt Commission Looks to Color Downtown, by Andy Meek]
Memphis Daily News
Some of Corson's works interact not with people, but with the environment. Examples include '' Nepenthes'', whimsical fiberglass sculptures on sidewalks in Portland that are covered with photo-voltaic cells that glow at night,[ and Sonic Bloom at Seattle's ]Pacific Science Center
Pacific Science Center is an independent, non-profit science center in Seattle with a mission to ignite curiosity and fuel a passion for discovery, experimentation, and critical thinking. Pacific Science Center serves more than 1 million people e ...
which features solar panels and gigantic metal flowers that light up at night. The flowers also hum when people approach them. In 1994 the city of Seattle selected Corson to integrate art into the new Cedar River Watershed Education Center. In characteristic fashion he exploited the natural resources of the site–for example using falling water to create a musical artwork in the ''Rain Drum Courtyard''.[Seattle's Public Art: Dan Corson, Cedar River Watershed]
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His theatrical set and lighting designs have been featured at the ACT Theatre, Annex Theatre, and On the Boards
On the Boards (OtB) is a non-profit contemporary performing arts organization in Seattle, Washington, founded in 1978. Originally located at Washington Hall in the Central District, the organization moved in 1998 to their current location in Up ...
in Seattle, at Young Vic in London, and at the San Diego Rep and the Old Globe
The Old Globe is a professional theatre company located in Balboa Park in San Diego, California. It produces about 15 plays and musicals annually in summer and winter seasons. Plays are performed in three separate theatres in the complex, which i ...
in San Diego.[Frye Art Museum, Degenerate Art Ensemble’s Red Shoes Artist Bios: Dan Corson]
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Life
Corson was born in Glendale, California.[ He received a ]Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...
in theatrical design from San Diego State University
San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...
in 1986 and a Master of Fine Arts in sculpture from the University of Washington
The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington.
Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattl ...
in 1992.[ He was a Scholar at the ]Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture
The Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture is an artists residency located in Madison, Maine, just outside of Skowhegan. Every year, the program accepts online applications from emerging artists from November through January, and selects 65 ...
in 1991. He studied glass-blowing and neon fabrication at the Pilchuck Glass School
Pilchuck Glass School is an international center for glass art education. The school was founded in 1971 by Dale Chihuly, Anne Gould Hauberg (1917-2016), and John H Hauberg (1916-2002). The campus is located on a former tree farm in Stanwood, W ...
in 1993, 1994, and 1996.[
After graduating from San Diego State University, he went to London for two years doing theater design and working with lighting designer ]David Hersey
David Hersey (born November 30, 1939) is a lighting designer who has designed the lighting for over 250 plays, musicals, operas, and ballets. His work has been seen in most corners of the globe and his awards include the Tony Award for Best Lightin ...
.[''A Man With Big Designs–Undaunted Innovator On Theater Sets, Dan Corson Now Makes The Whole World His Stage'', by Misha Berson, Theater Critic,Seattle Times, June 3, 1999]
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Corson has been together with his husband Berndt Stugger since 1997 and their Washington State Civil Union was converted into an official Marriage in 2014. Both Corson and Stugger are avid gardeners with a passion for tropical gardening. This botanical fascination can clearly be seen in Corson’s work. In 2010 they purchased some old sugarcane land in Hawaii Island and have transformed it into a small cacao farm.
Works
Corson has often collaborated in public art projects, for example working with fellow artists Norie Sato
Norie Sato (born July 19, 1949) is an artist living in Seattle, Washington. She works in the field of public art using sculpture and various media–including glass, terrazzo, plastic film, stone, and metal–and often incorporating lighting effect ...
, Sheila Klein Sheila Klein is a sculptor and public artist living and working in Bow, Washington and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Her practice straddles the worlds of architecture, sculpture, installation and traditional women's crafts. She is particularly noted for ...
, and Tad Savinar on Seattle's Sound Transit
Sound Transit (ST), officially the Central Puget Sound Regional Transit Authority, is a public transit agency serving the Seattle metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Washington. It operates the Link light rail system in Seattle and Tacoma, ...
Link Light Rail project in 1998.[Longtime light-rail artist Norie Sato is ‘curator’ of Link station art]
by Michael Upchurch, Seattle Times, Jul 11, 2009 Corson is a prolific artist and it is not practical to list all of his creations; a selected list of works is shown below.
* 2002 ''Wave Rave Cave'', Seattle['Wave Rave Cave' is artwork by day, club-scape by night]
by David Eggert, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Aug 30, 2002
* 2003 ''Antennae Reeds'', Seattle (with Norie Sato)[Museum Without Walls: Antennae Reeds by Dan Corson]
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* 2005 ''Rain Drum Courtyard'', North Bend, Washington[Immerse yourself (not literally) in the wilderness of the Cedar River Watershed]
by Carol Pucci, Seattle Post-Intelligencer, Apr 14, 2005
* 2007 ''Safety Spires'', Seattle[Public Art Network: Year in Review - 2006: ''Safety Spires'', by Dan Corson]
with Norie Sato
* 2007 ''Emerald Laser Lawn'', Fort Lauderdale, Florida[Americans for the Arts: public art network year in review database]
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* 2007 ''Luminous Conjunctions'', Fort Lauderdale, Florida[Public Art Network: Year in Review - 2007: ''Luminous Conjunctions'', by Dan Corson]
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* 2008 ''Emerald Aura'', Memphis, Tennessee[Public Art Network: Year in Review - 2010: ''Emerald Aura'', by Dan Corson]
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* 2009 ''The Root'', Bellevue, Washington
* 2009 ''Grotesque Arabesque'', Seattle
* 2009 ''Empyrean Passage'', West Hollywood, California[Public Art Network: Year in Review - 2009: ''Empyrean Passage'', by Dan Corson]
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* 2009 ''Oscillating Field'', Seattle[Public Art Network: Year in Review - 2010: ''Oscillating Field'', by Dan Corson]
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* 2013 '' Nepenthes'', Portland, Oregon[Art and Architecture: Nepenthes in Portland, Oregon, by Dan Corson]
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* 2013 '' Sonic Bloom'', Seattle
Awards
* 1998 Artist Trust
Artist Trust is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to supporting Washington artists working in all creative disciplines. Artist Trust provides artists the time and resources necessary to prosper. Since 1987 it has invested over ten million dol ...
GAP award[
* 2001 PAN Year in Review Award for Cedar River Watershed Visitors Center][
* 2003 ASLA Washington Chapter Honor Award][
* 2004 ASLA Design Award of Merit for Cedar River Watershed Education Center
* 2006 National ]AIA AIA or A.I.A. or Aia may refer to:
Aia
* Aia, a small town in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa, Spain
* Aia, current Kutaisi, ancient capital of Colchis
* Aia, another name for Aea (Malis), an ancient town in Greece
* ''Aia'', the collected ed ...
Housing Committee Award and AIA 2004 Seattle Honor Award[
* 2006 PAN Year in Review Award for ''Wave Rave Cave''
* 2007 PAN Year in Review Award for ''Emerald Laser Lawn''][
* 2007 PAN Year in Review Award for ''Safety Spires'' (in collaboration with Norie Sato)][Sound Transit OCS Poles Win National Art Award June 11, 2007]
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* 2009 PAN Year in Review Award for ''Empyrean Passage''[
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References
External links
Official web site
Seattle's Public Art: Dan Corson, Cedar River Watershed
Video
Museum Without Walls: List and location of works by Dan Corson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corson, Dan
1964 births
Living people
Artists from Seattle
San Diego State University alumni
University of Washington School of Art + Art History + Design alumni
People from Glendale, California
Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture alumni