Albany Library is a giant leap ahead in my creative work – and a first for Planet Earth.
Johanna, Andrew, and I got our first glimpse of the Albany Library on January 25, 2024 at three in the afternoon. Library Director, Eric Ikenouye, was delighted about the possibility of a 100 Libraries installation in his space.
At first, I was daunted by the darkly tinted windows, and it wasn’t until we’re about to leave that I noticed the two skylights buried in the beautifully painted white trusses in the two-story entrance gallery. I instantly envisioned the whole installation!
This January 25th, 2024 video tells the story the whole design:
1. I would replace the lobby’s translucent skylights with clear ones. 2. The city would remove the overhead wood slats, the giant racist wall painting, and 3. the white trusses would be flooded with ever-changing Solar Spectrum color.
Because of my Stage IV Prostate Cancer treatment and the workflow of 100 Libraries, it wasn’t until September 2025, that I was able to begin making the 1” scale, foam board model in the studio.
When the sun refracted the first spectrum in the miniature skylight prisms, the glorious creation was beyond my wildest dreams! Library Director Eric Ikenouye visited the studio and I showed him the model in various times of day and seasons. Eric was also deeply inspired.
Finally on April 13, 2026 we installed the art. Here my Studio Assistant, Leigh Torrence is guiding the new skylight to Project Volunteer, Byron Barrett, who’s pulling it up from the roof.
Byron and Leigh carry the bubble to finish installing the first Prism Array.
Holy shit video
With delight, Eric, absorbs a splash of living color.
Then on April 16th, the Libraries’ lobby creates a spherical rainbow canvas that we get to walk inside. From the ground floor entrances, to climbing the stairs, to viewing the art from the upstairs gallery, and gazing up through the white trusses into the skylight prisms – we are gazing up from inside a spherical space of Healing Rainbow Light.
Ever changing, always a fresh offering to Heart and Soul.
One of hundreds of moments of the trusses flooded with celestial rainbow paintings.
As the earth turns during this six hour Time Lapse Video, the infinitely changing rainbow painting bursts through Oregon clouds, flowing the spectrum across walls, stairs, floor and ceiling.
Leveraging the architectural design, ever-changing rainbow hues burn through the white plastic of the guard rail.
Guard rail carpet detail.
11:33 AM, April 16, looking down on the circulation desk.
11:47 AM, April 16, the Lobby’s subdued lighting allows the spectrum to come to the fore. Even the green carpet holds the color with great accuracy.
Rainbow bath for a Pure Soul.
Notice the squiggly organic shapes in the sun painting made from distorting the first surface mirrors in the skylight.
An hour later, the installation fades to small, minimalist splashes of color.
About 200,000 people visit the Albany Library each year. I’m planning to go back every couple of months to immerse my soul in the ever changing Celestial color infusion.
As my dear friend Bruce Odland says, “Always a fresh offering.”
