British painter Sir Frank Bowling has unveiled his first-ever digital artwork, titled Arrival, which will be displayed in London’s Piccadilly Circus until June 30th. The work will flash across the city’s iconic Piccadilly Lights every evening at 8:23 pm BST, replacing advertisements and brand logos. The exhibition is part of the Cultural Institute of Radical Contemporary Arts (CIRCA)’s ongoing initiative to broadcast new works of art by celebrated artists for free.
Arrival is inspired by Bowling’s move from British Guiana to London in May 1953 when he was just 19 years old, and one of his earliest defining memories is of the citywide celebrations for the late Queen’s coronation on June 2. The exhibition is timed for both the 75th anniversary of Windrush, the boat that carried Caribbean migrants to the U.K., and King Charles III’s coronation on May 6. The work’s warmly evocative orange, pink, and red tones are the result of crossfading two of Bowling’s celebrated Map Paintings, Texas Louise (1971) and Australia to Africa (1969–70).
Sir Frank Bowling, who is renowned for his abstract paintings, told Artnet News, “My intention is just to use color and geometry to create something that will hold the viewer’s eye. I am convinced that light comes out of the paint, and that’s what I’m looking for.”
The original paintings were made during a stint living in New York, where Bowling became interested in the stenciled map shapes of Guyana, Africa, Asia, and Australia. The shape of these maps became a guiding framework within which to explore color and geometry. Bowling said, “Thinking about my life moving from South America to London and then to New York, and then years moving back and forth across the Atlantic, referencing these earlier works seemed like the obvious move.”
CIRCA is inviting viewers with a connection to the Windrush Generation to upload photos documenting their own stories onto its website, some of which will be included in a special film screened on the Piccadilly Lights on June 22. Previous artists commissioned by CIRCA include Douglas Gordon, Caroline Walker, Anne Imhof, Laure Prouvost, Shirin Neshat, Marina Abramović, Yoko Ono, and Vivienne Westwood.
The program and map of CIRCA’s global network of public screens can be found on its website, and the work will also appear at 8:23 pm local time at locations in Berlin, Milan, Seoul, Los Angeles, and Tokyo. Arrival by Sir Frank Bowling is a new addition to London’s public art scene and is expected to attract art enthusiasts and passersby alike. The artwork’s unique use of color and light will undoubtedly captivate and inspire viewers for years to come.