Sphere Entertainment Co.’s Earth Day celebration highlights the artwork of multi-GRAMMY Award-winning Grateful Dead and Dead & Company percussionist Mickey Hart, along with renowned filmmaker Louie Schwartzberg. Their combined artwork will be featured in an 11-minute content show scheduled for 6:00 am PT on Monday, April 22nd, as well as at 7:00 pm and 8:00 pm PT. Additionally, their artworks will be showcased at various times throughout the day. Hart and Schwartzberg are the latest artists to contribute to the Exosphere through Sphere’s XO/Art program, which showcases the work of esteemed artists on Sphere’s immersive exterior.
“Our XO/Art program continues to make art available and accessible to the public in a highly innovative and unique way, both in Las Vegas and around the world,” said Jennifer Koester, President, of Sphere Business Operations at Sphere Entertainment. “Mickey Hart and Louie Schwartzberg are artists who utilize novel techniques to not only create impactful visuals, but also tell important stories, and we are proud to feature their immersive work in a first-of-its-kind show on the Exosphere to celebrate Earth Day.”
“I’ve always felt that music has the power to connect us to the rhythms of the Earth and the universe,” said Mickey Hart. “The Sphere project is my attempt to harness those rhythms and create something that speaks to the interconnectedness of all life. It’s a visual representation of the rhythms and energies that inspire me. It is like a beat in a song, creating layers of texture and emotion on the canvas. Earth Day should remind us that we are all part of a vast, cosmic symphony, and that it is our responsibility to care for this planet and all its inhabitants.”
“I am excited to share nature’s wonders on the largest canvas on Earth,” said Louie Schwartzberg. “These sequences make the invisible visible by exploring the foundations of Life. We start with Earth’s majestic landscapes, to soil making fungi, to flowers and their pollinators, all of which propels life to flourish. When assembled together, they tell the magical story of unseen worlds that sustain Life on Earth. This is the greatest story to tell on Earth Day. Let’s celebrate Life.”
Hart’s piece, entitled “Rhythms of the Universe,” is a 90-second visual symphony consisting of four phases, each characterized by unique movements and color patterns. From gentle undulations and ripples to vibrant color shifts and morphing shapes, the progression of phases is an exploration of a psychedelic cosmos. Hart, an expert in sound vibrations from his experience as a drummer, uses sound waves and their vibrations to move paint around on his canvases. To create the details and intricate patterns in his Exosphere piece, a Pythagorean monochord was played through a subwoofer whose ultra-low frequencies induce vibrations that bring the artwork to life. Through this artistic method, the paints undergo a metamorphosis, allowing the flow of colors to manifest in a myriad of ways.
For his six, 90-second Exosphere pieces, Schwartzberg went back to his documentarian roots, drawing from nature footage and utilizing his renowned time-lapse photography technique. The first piece, titled “Earth Masterpieces” features coral reefs, ocean views, waterfalls, and desert canyons. This is followed by a segment on mushrooms, featuring never-before-seen footage of lion’s mane and other species captured during the making of his 2019 documentary film, “Fantastic Fungi.” Next, “Seductive Flowers” captures the graceful movement of various blooms up-close, followed by “Master Pollinators,” which highlights the crucial role birds and bees play in the ecosystem. In the final two segments, “Organic Mandalas,” transforms nature imagery into intricate circles that represent the cycle of life, and “Nature Reimagined,” takes viewers on a transcendent journey through time and space.
