Independent Staff Report
WEST HOLLYWOOD — A public art sculpture installation, entitled “Meringue” by artist Kiduck Kim, is now on view in the traffic median of Santa Monica Boulevard east of Doheny Drive.
The exhibit’s lighting is designed to be changeable and will display various colors in association with major city events or celebrations. Through June 30, “Meringue” will be illuminated in rainbow colors in celebration of LGBTQ Pride as part of the City’s One City One Pride LGBTQ Arts Festival.
The translucency of “Meringue” lets sunlight in to glow naturally during the daytime, and at night transforms the exhibit into a mixing chamber of various light combinations. The artworks are made of high-density polyethylene and illuminated with energy-efficient LEDs.
Award-winning architect and artist Kiduck Kim explores the spectrums between art and architecture, digital fabrication and handcrafted — man-made and natural, virtual and real — through geometric experimentations.
A first-prize winner of Baku International Architecture Award endorsed by the International Union of Architects, a recipient of the Next Generation Design Leader awarded by the Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and an exhibitor at the Venice Biennale in 2006, Kiduck’s work has been showcased internationally.
A licensed architect, with a master’s degree from the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University, he honed his skills while working at Zaha Hadid Architects and Eisenman Architects, and, together with Frank Gehry, ran a graduate program at UCLA.
“Meringue” is an Art on the Outside project organized by the city of West Hollywood’s Arts Division, part of the city’s Communications Department. The Art on the Outside program installs rotating temporary artworks on the city’s medians and in parks. It is anticipated to be on display through July 2022.
The installation is located within the city’s ocean-friendly garden in the traffic median of Santa Monica Boulevard. Median plantings in the location were designed in collaboration with the West Basin Water District using ecological principles and water conservation. Water-efficient plants, native to California, showcase the beauty of drought-tolerant plantings.
