The Screens of Times Square to Get Psychedelic with August's Midnight Moment

In partnership with Upfor Gallery, Times Square Arts presents artist MSHR's Convolution Weave~Lattice Domain on Times Square's electronic billboards from 11:57 p.m. to midnight every night in August. This project is a part of Midnight Moment, a monthly presentation by The Times Square Advertising Coalition (TSAC) and Times Square Arts. MSHR's work is also currently featured in the Past Skin exhibition at MoMA PS1 (open through September 10, 2017) and The World is Sound at the Rubin Museum (open through January 18, 2018), and will appear in the Sonic Arcade exhibition at the Museum of Arts and Design (September 14, 2017 - February 25, 2018).

Through spinning virtual sculptures and a specific visual language, MSHR create their own highly aestheticized, psychedelic version of the type of sensory overload found on the electronic screens of Times Square. The elaborate sculptures, which shift colors as they reflect digital light, seem one moment to almost be physical objects and the next to be obviously virtual, flowing from real to imaginary. In setting up algorithmic procedures and cued extrusions, then responding intuitively when the procedures lead to a turning point, MSHR design forms that resonate with an invisible mental architecture - shapes that feel right, even if they may not be possible in reality, much as the reality of New York City itself may or may not overlap with mental perceptions of the city.

MSHR, Artists, said, "We construct hypershapes that reflect consciousness, just as the content in Times Square reflects the psychic structure of our culture. There are many possible shapes of reality. We aim to warp the frayed edges of this media node, minding the intentions behind mental influence through imagery. Our intention is to inject the light stream with objects sculpted for presence of mind."

Theo Downes-Le Guin, Owner of Upfor Gallery, said, "MSHR's Convolution Weave~Lattice Domain is based in pattern, repetition and arrangements of 3D space - very similar to the patterns and arrangements that we move through every day in built environments and urban systems. Upfor Gallery is excited to see how the artists connect their virtual spaces to one of the world's greatest physical spaces, and we're grateful to Times Square Arts for this opportunity."

Tim Tompkins, President of the Times Square Alliance, said, "The uncanny shapes of Convolution Weave~Lattice Domain create a dialogue with the angles and colors of Times Square's architecture, using virtual creations to simultaneously reflect, contrast, and add to the physical environment that surrounds them."

Debra Simon, Times Square Arts Director, said, "MSHR's intricate and complex geometries revolve one after another, seeming almost to transcend the screens that display them."

Fred Rosenberg, President of the Times Square Advertising Coalition, said, "MSHR's Convolution Weave~Lattice Domain is a collection of psychedelic sculptures that vibrate and spin in response to their environment. This project complements Times Square, an area that is known for unique sights, sounds and vibrancy."

Harry Coghlan, Chairman of the Times Square Advertising Coalition, said, "Created to evoke a sensory experience, Convolution Weave~Lattice Domain's sculptures will be shown on the iconic billboards in Times Square. MSHR's sculptures address today's technological environment and the digital realm."

The following digital screens are participating in the August Midnight Moment:

ABC SuperSign, American Eagle Times Square, Bank of America, Branded Cities 7 Times Square, Branded Cities NASDAQ Tower Times Square, Branded Cities Thomson Reuters, CEMUSA, City Outdoor, Clear Channel Spectacolor HD127, Clear Channel Spectacolor HD128, Disney Store Spectacular, Microsoft Cube and Welcome Center Live Tiles, Morgan Stanley, Outfront Media 1515 Broadway/ Viacom North & South, SILVERCAST Digital Spectacular - Times Square, Superior Digital Displays Crossroads of the World, Triple Play on 7th Ave & The Waterfall on 42nd St.

About Midnight Moment

Midnight Moment is the world's largest, longest-running digital art exhibition, synchronized on electronic billboards throughout Times Square nightly from 11:57pm to Midnight. Presented by the Times Square Advertising Coalition and curated by Times Square Arts since 2012, it has an estimated annual viewership of 2.5 million.

Past artists featured in the program include Sun Xun; Alex Prager; Joshua Frankel; Naoko Tosa; Matteo Zamagni; Alex Da Corte; Pipilotti Rist; Tal Yarden; Emilio Perez; Tim Etchells; Elizabeth Peyton and Kristian Emdal; Jherek Bischoff; Beau Stanton; Saya Woolfalk; Jennifer Steinkamp; Soundwalk Collective; Lorna Mills; Peter Fischli and David Weiss; Laurie Anderson; Antony Nagelmann; Jesper Just; Shahzia Sikander; Rashaad Newsome; Osgemeos; Eric Dyer; Richard Garet; Andy Warhol; Peggy Ahwesh; Marco Brambilla; Rafaël Rozendaal; Sebastian Errazuriz; Charles Atlas and Antony; Noah Hutton; Ryoji Ikeda; Daniel Canogar; Alfredo Jaar; Isaac Julien; Robert Wilson; Tracey Emin; Seoungho Cho; Vicki DaSilva, Surabhi Saraf, and Elly Cho; Erika Janunger; Takeshi Murata; Bel Borba with Burt Sun and André Costantini; Zach Nader; BrIan Gonzalez (aka Taxiplasm); Björk; JR; Ryan McGinley; Jack Goldstein; Nature Theater of Oklahoma; Ezra Wube; Laleh Khorramian; Brian Dailey; Leslie Thornton; and Yoko Ono. For more information on past projects, please visit: http://www.timessquarenyc.org/times-square-arts/projects/midnight-moment/index.aspx.