Illuminated Public Art Exhibits in Downtown Manhattan

Downtown Manhattan is shining bright like a diamond these days thanks to two illuminated public art exhibits –

• Pulse Portal by Davis McCarty
• Geo by Hou de Sousa, a design studio

Both these are an explosion of color among the mostly dressed in black New Yorkers they are surrounded by, and that does include me. My closet would be very bare if the color black did not exist!

They’re a nice addition to Living Lantern, another illumiated art exhibit that is brightening up Midtown Manhattan these days.

Pulse Portal by Davis McCarty

Pulse Portal is on the waterfront plaza at Brookfield Place, looking like a doorway to the other side with its backdrop of the Hudson River. It was previously on display at Burning Man, where it would truly have been a portal to the other side!

Pulse Portal is described to be “built from NASA developed materials where colors transform as the angle of the viewer transits through space”.

The colors are intended to represent the diversity and spark in all of us. I loved the transition in colors or even how different it looks by day and by night as you can see in the pictures below, with the World Trade Center as a backdrop.

Here’s a video of Pulse Portal as I don’t think pictures do it justice –

Pulse Portal is on display at Brookfield Place through March 10, 2023.

Geo by Hou de Sousa

Geo is a second illuminated exhibit within walking distance of Pulse Portal, by New Yorker standards that is! At 30 ft by 10ft, it is a splash of color that brightens up the neighborhood. It is structured to reflect the urban landscape, with corridors that you can walk through like the streets of Manhattan, only more colorful.

Walking through this was really fun for all ages, as there were adults and kids taking it all in from the inside.

Geo is brightening up the long winter nights at 140 Broadway through March 30, 2023.

#gottalovenewyork