August 1-31, 2015, every night from 11:57 p.m.–midnight
(New York, N.Y.) July 20, 2015 — Brazilian artist duo OSGEMEOS bring their iconic animated characters in the form of a new work, Parallel Connection, to interact with audiences through Times Square’s electronic billboards from 11:57 pm to midnight each night in August. This project is a part of Midnight Moment, a monthly presentation by The Times Square Advertising Coalition (TSAC) and Times Square Arts.
Through the depiction of these iconic characters, OSGEMEOS’s animation, Parallel Connection, breaks the barriers between imagination and reality. The brothers, Gustavo and Otavio Pandolfo, want to connect with the joyful and creative aspects that they feel every individual has inside of themselves and can visualize through dreams. The dream world is the one place where every person in the universe can be connected if they can just break the barriers between imagination and the physical world.
Tim Tompkins, President of the Times Square Alliance, said, “OSGEMEOS’ animation created especially for us reaches right out to our Times Square audiences to invite them into this alternative universe.'
Sherry Dobbin, Times Square Arts Director, said, “OSGEMEOS have been on our wish list as their work engages the imagination of the viewers, seduces them with vibrant aesthetics and pulls everyone into a world in which diversity, humor and humanity co-exist.”
Fred Rosenberg, President of the Times Square Advertising Coalition, said, 'It's an honor to host such publicly-appreciated artists who engage young audiences with our August program and demonstrate how our screens show the same summer excitement as the urban 'drive-in' movie.
Harry Coghlan, Chairman of the Times Square Advertising Coalition, said, 'We were drawn to how these artists directly reference our screens as the leading role of the video in a playful and hypnotic way.'
Artist OSGEMEOS, said, “We are very happy to try new media, because it was always exciting. This is the first time that we created something of this scale, using screens and a longer animation. It is a dialogue between two worlds, where the viewer is in the middle of the stage, and establishes a conversation between the imaginary and the real world, a break in time to reflect and daydream.”
The following digital screens are participating in the July Midnight Moment:
ABC Super Sign, American Eagle Times Square, Bank of America, Branded Cities 7 Times Square, Branded Cities NASDAQ Tower Times Square, Branded Cities Thomson Reuters, Outfront Media 1515 Broadway/ Viacom North & South, CEMUSA, City Outdoor, Clear Channel Spectacolor HD127/CNN, Clear Channel Spectacolor HD128, Disney Store Spectacular, Sherwood Equities 1 Times Square, Superior Digital Displays Three Times Square #5, Superior Digital Displays Triple Play
About Midnight Moment
Midnight Moment is the largest coordinated effort in history by the sign operators in Times Square to display synchronized, cutting-edge creative content on electronic billboards and newspaper kiosks throughout Times Square every night. The program premiered in May 2012 and is organized and supported by the Times Square Advertising Coalition in partnership with Times Square Arts, the public art program of the Times Square Alliance, with additional partners of participating sign holders and artists.
Each night, Times Square becomes a digital art gallery through dazzling visuals on select billboards and newsstands. Every show begins at 11:57 p.m. with a "countdown" that signals the start of the three minute nightly presentation. Past artists featured in the program include Eric Dyer; Richard Garet; Andy Warhol; Peggy Ahwesh; Marco Brambilla; Rafaël Rozendaal; Sebastian Errazuriz; Charles Atlas and Antony; Noah Hutton; Ryoji Ikeda; Daniel Canogar; Alfredo Jaar; Isaac Julien; Robert Wilson; Tracey Emin; Seoungho Cho; Vicki DaSilva, Surabhi Saraf, and Elly Cho; Erika Janunger; Takeshi Murata; Bel Borba with Burt Sun and André Costantini; Zach Nader; Brian Gonzalez (aka Taxiplasm); Björk; JR; Ryan McGinley; Jack Goldstein; Nature Theater of Oklahoma; Ezra Wube; Laleh Khorramian; Brian Dailey; Leslie Thornton; and Yoko Ono. For more information on past projects, please visit:
http://www.timessquarenyc.org/times-square-arts/projects/midnight-moment/index.aspx.
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Times Square Advertising Coalition (TSAC) is a trade association comprised of major advertisers, retailers, real estate firms, media companies and other businesses involved in the outdoor sign industry in Times Square, along with organizations representing Broadway and the community. Members of TSAC include: ABC Regional Sports & Entertainment Sales, Clear Channel Spectacolor, Daktronics, D3 LED, Digital Domination, Hines Management, Jamestown One Times Square, Lamar Advertising Company, Landmark Sign & Electric, Metro Media Technologies, Newmark Knight Frank, North Shore Neon, P.R.omotion!, Sherwood Outdoor, SL Green, Times Square Alliance, The WOW Factor and Thomson Reuters. www.timessquareadcoalition.org. Follow TSAC on twitter at @TSACNYC.
Times Square Arts, the public art program of the Times Square Alliance, collaborates with contemporary artists and cultural institutions to experiment and engage with one of the world's most iconic urban places. Through the Square's electronic billboards, public plazas, vacant areas and popular venues, and the Alliance's own online landscape, Times Square Arts invites leading contemporary creators to help the public see Times Square in new ways. Times Square has always been a place of risk, innovation and creativity, and the Arts Program ensures these qualities remain central to the district's unique identity. Generous support of Times Square Arts is provided by the New York State Council on the Arts, the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Visit http://www.timessquarenyc.org/times-square-arts/index.aspx for more information. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @TSqArts.
OSGEMEOS (b. 1974, São Paulo, Brazil), translated as the "twins" in Portuguese, have worked together since birth. As children, they developed a distinct way of playing and communicating through artistic language. With the encouragement of their older brother, Arnaldo, and the introduction of hip hop culture in Brazil in the 1980s, OSGEMEOS found a direct connection to their dynamic and magical universe and a way to communicate with the public. The artists utilize this combined visual language, use of improvisation, and shared dreamworld to intuitively create a variety of projects worldwide including, murals, paintings, sculpture, site-specific installations, and video. As represented in their work, the brothers believe in their own universe, from which they dream and get inspiration. In 2012, the ICA Boston hosted a major exhibition of their work, which included gallery-based works of art in addition to public commissions around the city of Boston. They have also been featured in a variety of solo and group exhibitions including Art in the Streets at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles (2011); Vertigem, Centro Cultural Banco do Brazil, Brasília, Brazil (2010); and When Lives Become Form: Creative Power from Brazil, Tokyo City Museum of Contemporary Art, Tokyo, Japan (2009), in addition to special commissioned projects with Tate Modern, London (2008) and Creative Time, NY (2005). OSGEMEOS live and work in São Paulo, Brazil. For more information, visit http://osgemeos.com.br. Follow on Twitter and Instagram at @osgemeos.
Founded in 1996 by partners Rachel Lehmann and David Maupin, Lehmann Maupin has fostered the careers of a diverse group of internationally renowned artists, both emerging and established, working in multiple disciplines and across varied media. With three locations—two in New York and one in Hong Kong—the gallery represents artists from the United States, Europe, Asia, South America, Africa, and the Middle East. Known for championing artists who create groundbreaking and challenging forms of visual expression, Lehmann Maupin presents work highlighting personal investigations and individual narratives through conceptual approaches that often address such issues as gender, class, religion, history, politics, and globalism.
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Media Contacts
For Times Square Arts:
TJ Witham (212) 452-5234│ TJWitham@TimesSquareNYC.org
Marisa Wayne (212) 843-9216 │MWayne@Rubenstein.com
For TSAC:
Justine DiGiglio (212) 205-6632 │Justine@NicholasLence.com