Strategic Property Partners Announces Commissioned Public Art for Water Street Tampa

As phase 1 of the 56-acre Water Street Tampa development continues to make progress towards completion in Downtown Tampa, developer Strategic Property Partners (SPP) is pleased to announce the expansion of its vibrant public art in the community. Two art installations were commissioned to anchor the neighborhood, bringing in the works of San Francisco-based artist Jim Campbell and London-based art and design firm Jason Bruges Studio. Campbell’s piece is a curved wall structure that produces moving light pictures and will be located in Raybon Plaza adjacent to Thousand & One, while Jason Bruges Studio is bringing a site-specific interactive light installation to the pedestrian skybridge connecting the JW Marriott Tampa Water Street and Tampa Marriott Water Street.

Jason Bruges Studio’s light installation on the pedestrian skybridge linking the Marriot hotels takes inspiration from Tampa’s brackish marine environment and the idea that flourishing ecologies and cultures are stimulated by dialogue, diversity and interaction. Named Halocline
Sky, the bridge features a matrix of digital rings enlivened by responsive animations, using real-time simulations to create a playful, interactive canvas that spans the length of the 200-foot skybridge. The activity happening within the bridge and at the street level will generate and inform a choreography of light.

Halocline Sky. Designed by Jason Bruges Studio.

“Public art provides thoughtful experiences that everyone can enjoy; the works we have selected for Water Street Tampa create unique opportunities for the community to engage,” said Lee Schaffler, Chief Portfolio Officer of SPP.

Halocline Sky. Designed by Jason Bruges Studio.

Jim Campbell’s Three Arcs installation will feature three seven-foot-tall curved walls embedded with customized LED panels encased within cast glass panels, that project diffused abstracted imagery and emit patterns of light that slowly transform. Through its illuminated moving images, Three Arcs has been designed to evoke an emotional and contemplative response and provide a meditative viewing experience that works within the plaza’s lush landscaping and serene setting.

Three Arcs. Designed by Jim Campbell .

“We are thrilled to present our first artwork in Tampa,” said Jason Bruges. “SPP has really supported our creative journey, giving us the opportunity to develop a piece that reflects the lively character of the city. Halocline Sky uses technology and storytelling to respond to Tampa’s rich natural and urban ecosystems. It’s a fun, engaging artwork that we hope will be a timeless source joy for the local community and visitors.”

Three Arcs. Designed by Jim Campbell .

“I’m very excited to see Three Arcs in its final setting – in particular how the sculpture, with its rusted steel and glass, will act as a bridge between the landscaped plantings and the geometric pedestrian pathways and nearby architecture,” said Jim Campbell. “I’m looking forward to exploring multiple concepts for the interwoven triptych of images, which can only be finalized with the sculpture in situ.”

SPP is currently working with a wide range of local, national and international artists to add to its vibrant streetscape. A number of works are already on display throughout Water Street Tampa. They include WATERFRONTIER by Ya Levy La’ford, All the Mornings of the World by Bosco Sodi and You Belong Here by Tavares Strachan. The district’s art scene will continue to flourish with the unveiling of murals by Pep Rally Inc., Leon Keer, Stephen Palladino and Dyan Mierzwinsku. A striking immersive installation by British artist Lucy Sparrow will debut at 1050 Water Street early next year. The building’s retail space will host Tampa Fresh Foods, a supermarket crafted from Sparrow’s signature felt artwork, beginning in January.

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