Set in front of Father Duffy Square’s iconic Red Steps, Times Square‘s Valentine Heart public art installation appears year after year from 30 January through 28 February. For the 12th annual installation, selected through the Times Square Valentine Heart Design Competition, MODU Architecture and Eric Forman Studio‘s winning design will come to life. Known as “Heart Squared,” the multi-dimensional, mixed material work will celebrate love and the transformative power of design. It was one of several well-conceived finalists and follows up 2019’s pavilion-like presentation by CH favorite Reddymade Design.
“Heart Squared” employs 125 tilted mirrors to reflect the shape of a romantic heart, all inside a steel frame that calls to mind an anatomic heart. This reflective center triggers a kaleidoscopic effect—blending billboards, buildings and passersby into a bundle of Times Square life. Each angle has been meticulously planned to deliver the desired spectacle.
Altogether, it “represents the collective heart of the city and as such, is an engaging civic statement about celebrating our differences and bringing people together in a fundamentally inclusive way,” explains a MODU representative. Conceptually, it stood out from the other proposals for the 2020 installation. Once again, Times Square Arts—a division of the Times Square Alliance—partnered with Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum to bring the competition and installation together.
Images courtesy of MODU and Eric Forman Studio