new art through architecture “artboards” by scott gobber and miki baird debut at missouri bank crossroads, first friday in february
Missouri Bank’s Crossroads Branch, 125 Southwest Boulevard, debuts four new commissioned images on its “Artboards” on Feburary 6, by Kansas City based artists Archie Scott Gobber and Miki Baird. Gobber’s images, to be displayed side-by-side, reference, and literally illustrate, the buzzword that so pervaded the recent presidential election, while also capitalizing on the nature of the billboard itself as something temporary, to be replaced in the near future with a different message. Miki Baird’s “Urban Deposit” draws upon her interest in pedestrian waste—“litter, trash and ‘stuff’—the kind of things we all leave behind.” For this piece, Baird walked around the Crossroads area photographing plastic bottles, cups, and discarded wrappers, in situ and close-up, then combined dozens of these small images to create a larger pattern.
The “Artboards” project began last fall, when the building’s existing double-sided billboards were renovated and converted into a highly visible site for work by area artists as part of Missouri Bank’s purchase and renovation of the building. Designed by Helix Architecture + Design, Missouri Bank’s was the first Kansas City area building project to gain “Art Achievement” through Art through Architecture (AtA), a partnership of American Institute of Architects-Kansas City and Charlotte Street Foundation designed to encourage collecting and commissioning work by Kansas City area artists through architectural practice. Read the full press release. Visit AtA’s NEW WEBSITE: www.ArtArch.org.