John Gerrard: Solar Reserve

The installation displays a computer simulation of a solar power plant on a large (24 by 28 feet) frameless LED wall in front of the plaza's fountain. Per the Public Art Fund, the actual power plant the piece is based on features "a solar thermal power tower, surrounded by 10,000 mirrors that reflect sunlight upon it to heat molten salts, essentially forming a thermal battery which is used to generate electricity."

The work accurately simulates the sun, moon and stars moving across the Nevada sky, with the mirrors repositioning themselves accordingly. Visitors are treated to two months of a real-time, yearlong simulation, where over the course of each hour the point of view moves gradually from a ground level to a satellite view, akin to the photographs above and below. The timepiece-like nature of the work is reiterated by the artist: "The piece cannot be consumed as a film might – it is much longer and akin perhaps to a durational performance. The work exists over a 365 day period, and visitors to this installation at Lincoln Center will get to experience two months of it."