The nonprofit AT&T Performing Arts Center, in partnership with the founders of Aurora, today announced the list of 18 sponsors who are supporting ‘PRELUDE: A Preview of Aurora 2017’ – Powered by Reliant. This group includes a range of companies from food and beverage, engineering and construction, fashion, media, real estate, energy, and service. The free event will transform the AT&T Performing Arts Center campus and the Meyerson Symphony Center with light, video and sound-based, immersive arts installations on Friday, October 21st and Saturday, October 22nd.
These sponsors are backing a free public art event that draws tens of thousands of locals and tourists to the Dallas Arts District and boosts the local economy – in addition to showcasing international innovative art. The complete list of PRELUDE sponsors includes: Accenture; Campari; Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau; Downtown Dallas, Inc.; EBS Solutions; Fluor; Guide Live; HKS; Lincoln Property Group; Neiman Marcus; Paperlyte; Pernod Ricard USA; Platinum Parking; Proximo; Reliant, an NRG company; Spire Realty Group, LP; Topo Chico; and Wolfgang Puck Catering. PRELUDE’s media partner is The Dallas Morning News, which is the Founding Media Partner for Aurora.
Reliant, the AT&T Performing Arts Center’s official energy provider, is the event sponsor for PRELUDE. Reliant is also sponsoring a specific installation: “Waterlight Graffiti” by Antonin Fourneau of Paris. “Waterlight Graffiti,” a wall of LEDs that illuminate when touched by water, was created using a new kind of reactive material to draw or write ephemeral messages made of light. This project will invite the audience to create their own temporary “graffiti” on the wall of LEDs with a basic environment-friendly atomizer. Reliant also supports the Center’s free annual holiday event Reliant Lights Your Holidays.
Fluor is sponsoring the installation “Light Wave” by artist duo teamVOID of Seoul, and underwriting an education program to accompany the piece. “Light Wave” uses LED lights and motors to produce optical illusions; the artistic engineering and movement of this installation make it appear wave-like and kinetic. The audience will experience different perceptions of space, transcending the limited experience of an existing display. Because of Fluor’s support, approximately 150 students from three local high schools will learn from teamVOID about the role engineering plays in their studio practice.
Neiman Marcus is an education sponsor at the Center, and they’re supporting PRELUDE-specific education programs: In the week leading up to PRELUDE, the Center will send artists to classrooms across the city to discuss how technology is changing the way artists create. Transportation will be made available for school groups to attend PRELUDE, and family activities and tours will be available during the event.
In the spirit of Aurora and its commitment to creating free and public experiences of innovative contemporary art, PRELUDE will remain free of charge for both nights. In 2011, 2013 and 2015, the Aurora biennial event stretched across the Dallas Arts District. Last year’s event attracted a record 50,000 people in a single night.
The full list of PRELUDE artists is: Alicia Eggert & Safwat Saleem (Denton), Antonin Fourneau (Paris), Shilpa Gupta (Mumbai), Herman Kolgen (Montreal), Quayola (London), teamVOID (Seoul), and Tramaine Townsend (Dallas), and u_joo+limheeyoung (Seoul). The curators are DooEun Choi (New York), Justine Ludwig (Dallas) and Nadim Samman (Berlin).
- MUSIC
- Live music will precede each night of PRELUDE:
- Friday, October 21: Brave Combo – 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. – Strauss Square
- Saturday, October 22: Larry g(EE) – 6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. – Strauss Square
- Note: Both performances are free to the public.
To sign up for updates and RSVP, visit www.attpac.org/prelude
PRELUDE LIGHTS
This year, the AT&T Performing Arts Center will also be hosting its first major fundraising event, Prelude Lights, on the night before PRELUDE, Thursday, October 20. The ticketed event will take place in the Center’s outdoor amphitheater Annette Strauss Square surrounded by the city’s skyline. Proceeds from Prelude Lights will support arts education, community programs and future imaginative projects presented by the nonprofit Center. Prelude Lights is an extraordinary evening of interactive art, culinary delights and a live performance by Denton-based electronic band Neon Indian and a DJ set by Zhora. Guests will also be the first to see and interact with the curated PRELUDE. More information about Prelude Lights, including tickets and sponsorship opportunities, is available at www.preludelights.com
