QC, THAT'S WHERE!
QC, THAT'S WHERE!
QC, That’s Where a glowing gift to the Quad Cities becomes Iowa’s largest public art display
Something extraordinary is about to light up the Quad Cities skyline. The Figge Art Museum's glass façade will soon transform into Evanescent Field – a breathtaking light installation and the largest public art display in Iowa's history.
As the Figge celebrates its centennial year, Executive Director Melissa Mohr and one of the Senior Curators, Joshua Johnson, reveal the journey behind this monumental project. World-renowned artist Leo Villareal, creator of San Francisco's famous Bay Lights, has designed a mesmerizing installation featuring over 3,000 feet of programmable LED lights woven throughout the museum's glass exterior. Unlike typical light displays, Evanescent Field creates sequences that never repeat, responding specifically to the Mississippi River, the community, and the building itself.
"We wanted to give something back to the community that's supported us for 100 years," explains Mohr. The installation fulfills architect David Chipperfield's original vision for the building as a beacon of creativity and accessibility. Johnson describes how Villareal transforms LEDs from commercial tools into what he calls a "digital campfire" – a gathering place where art transcends traditional boundaries. Visible to everyone passing by, whether commuting to work or traveling through the region, Evanescent Field removes barriers to experiencing art.
The public unveiling happens May 17th at "Glow Up" – a community celebration featuring live music, family activities and food trucks, culminating when Villareal himself activates the installation as darkness falls. Even after the celebration ends, the lights will continue illuminating the Quad Cities nightly, becoming a postcard-worthy image representing the region's creative spirit.
Discover the technical marvels, artistic vision, and hopeful future this landmark installation represents. As the Figge looks toward its next hundred years, Evanescent Field symbolizes its commitment to weaving art more deeply into the fabric of the community – creating a museum that truly belongs to everyone. Don't miss your chance to witness this stunning merger of architecture, technology and artistic expression that will forever change how we see the Quad Cities after dark.
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The Figgy. Our mission is bringing art and people together right. So now we're going to have this kind of external beacon calling all people to the Quad Cities and to the Figgy itself to kind of experience the great art that we have to offer within the museum, the great art we have to offer from within the region. And you know, right here in the Quad Cities and the artists that are making things right here in the Quad Cities, as well.
Speaker 2:Where do you find a family of communities connected by the storied Mississippi River, where young explorers and dreamers, investors and entrepreneurs thrive? Where can you connect with real people living and creating in a place that's as genuine as it is quirky QC? That's where.
Speaker 3:Welcome to QC. That's where I'm. Katrina, your host. Thank you for joining today. It's a really special episode with Melissa Moore, the executive director and CEO of the Figgy, and then Joshua Johnson, one of the Figgy's senior curators, and we're going to be talking about a really amazing community asset that is bubbling up really soon. Talking about a really amazing community asset that is bubbling up really soon, the Figge will soon be the host of the largest public art display in the state of Iowa, one of the largest public art displays in the Midwest, and this is really huge. So, before we get too far, melissa, I want to throw it right to you this is huge. Can you set the stage for what is going on?
Speaker 4:I would love to and thank you, katrina, for having us. We're very excited to be speaking with you and with your listeners and your watchers, for those who are watching this. So Evanescent Field is the name of the game and this is, like Katrina said, the largest public sculpture in the state of Iowa, one of the largest in the Midwest, one of the most ambitious light sculptures, certainly in the state of Iowa, one of the largest in the Midwest, one of the most ambitious light sculptures, certainly in the region. We're really excited to be focusing on this as we head through our centennial year. So, for those of you who are less familiar with the Figge, the Figge Art Museum was actually founded in 1925.
Speaker 4:So we are celebrating our centennial year this year and, as we reflected back on 1925 and how the museum began, it began with a gift.
Speaker 4:So a gift of art to the city of Davenport before we, before we, had an art gallery or a museum for our community, and as our team was thinking about what we can do to truly celebrate the generosity and support of our community these past hundred years, we thought it should come in the form of a gift.
Speaker 4:So, thinking about a gift that we can give to the community and, of course, when you're thinking about something on that level and you want to make sure you remove all barriers to access, it really takes the form of public art.
Speaker 4:So when we were coming up with the concept of doing a public piece, we also were thinking you know, the building itself, designed by Sir David Chipperfield, turns 20 this year. He had always intended for us to have light as part of the building and it's just something that we never got to realize when we opened in 2005. So what if we take the idea of lighting the building and work with a world renowned artist who works in this medium and we think about public art, what happens when we do that? And the result is Evanescent Field by artist Leo Villarreal, which is something that we're going to be unveiling to the public on May 17th. So, coming up very shortly here, we're really excited to be able to offer this to our community as a thank you for everything the community has done and offered to us over the past 100 years.
Speaker 3:So this really speaks to the fact that you know the Quad Cities we all have called the creative capital of the Midwest. It's things like. You know not only the history of the figgy and the gift and the, you know the family that got it started, but what's come after that. You know the brilliant creative minds that interface in this community and that contribute to what you guys are adding to the Figge. And so you know, like you said, leo Villareal is world renowned.
Speaker 3:He did the Bay Lights on the Bay Bridge. He's got works in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the National Gallery of Art in DC, and so his work coming here, that creative mind just amplifies, I feel, what our local people are doing as well, and so it's really exciting to see that collaboration that you guys have been able to get somebody world renowned and really invested in this piece coming so soon. So, joshua, can you speak a little bit to what it's been like as a curator? You know, on the back end of this, how has this all come together? What do you foresee this doing long term for, you know, not only the FIGI but like the patrons and people in the destination who are just going to stumble upon it.
Speaker 1:Well, I think this is a really great opportunity to have the building itself further kind of reflect what is going on within.
Speaker 1:You know the FIGge.
Speaker 1:Our mission is bringing art and people together right so now we're going to have this kind of external beacon calling all people to the Quad Cities and to the Figge itself to kind of experience the great art that we have to offer within the museum, the great art we have to offer from within the region and you know, right here in the Quad Cities and the artists that are making things right here in the Quad Cities as well.
Speaker 1:You know you were talking about this kind of synthesis of what's happening with you know local artists and you know a really national and internationally known artist like Leo Villareal and so things like. You know, in our lobby right now, where we have a work by Steve Banks and an artist who you know I could throw a rock from the figgy and hit his studio by Steve Banks, an artist who you know I could throw a rock from the figgy and hit his studio and he's hanging alongside Leo Villareal's Cosmic Bloom figgy piece, which is a work that he designed for his Interstellar exhibition we had this past year. We can talk more about that.
Speaker 1:But, it's great to have these things in conversation, where there's this international artist and this, you know, local artists all being able to be shown together. We're also really excited that you know this is going to be a piece that is going to be experienced by people who not only, you know, come to the museum, but even people who don't realize it is a museum People who are driving by or commuting to work, are heading on their travels, or even we're hoping I don't know if we'll be able to but be able to see it from flying overhead as well. So just a real indication of what's going on in this community and in this museum particularly.
Speaker 4:Hey Josh, can I jump in for a second?
Speaker 1:Please.
Speaker 4:So, building on what you just shared, katrina, one of the things that we're really excited about is, you know, in the weeks leading up to May 17th and the official unveiling we hope everyone comes and celebrates with us we have been testing the fixtures. So the fixtures are over 3,000 feet of these LEDs that are lining the entire building, our glass facade and our curtain wall. And as we've been testing them, of course people are seeing it. It's not like we can hide this and then you know, just suddenly have it work. We need to be working on it in real time, and so there's been a lot of chatter online. People sit driving by at night. They'll see a strip of light within the museum and say what is happening, what is going on.
Speaker 4:So, kind of to Josh's point, this allows everyone to have renewed curiosity and to get excited about how art is all around us. It is everywhere and you know it can come in many different forms, even those that you may not expect, so we're thrilled about that. In thinking about the cultural and creative capital of the Midwest, we're proud to be part of that. We're honored to be part of that. We're honored to be part of that. So, having a world-class art collection and bringing in so many exhibitions a year, having educational outreach and community programs, thinking about the regional collaboration that happens around leadership and cultural creative endeavors, committing to access for all. You know, all of these things are really what inspire us to continue doing the work that we're doing toward our mission of bringing art and people together, as Kioshoa mentioned, but even beyond that, to our vision of thinking about how art can transform lives, and so we're really excited to be part of that in this community.
Speaker 3:If you're listening in like real time, you know this podcast is being published late April, excuse me, late April 2025, may 17th, as you said, melissa, is the big event where the flip the switch, so to speak is being flipped, and so, if you're hearing this after, you know all of this has already happened, but now is the time to go see it. It's there in real life now and, as you said Melissa, people are stumbling upon it as they drive by or as they visit and they're going. What is this, what's going on? And so we're so excited to be just weeks away from the event Glow Up. So can you talk a little bit about and again, if you're hearing this and it hasn't happened yet, I'd love to have you set the stage for what will Glow Up involve, like the day of May 17th? What is going to be happening on your plaza?
Speaker 4:So Glow Up is the big public party that we've been working on for months now with a lot of our cherished partners, such as the Quad Cities Cultural Trust, our legacy partners through that organization and many others throughout the community. We are going to activate our plaza, which is the open space, the public space in front of the museum on the north side. We'll have live music and entertainment, family-friendly activities starting around seven o'clock at night, of course, because we want to make sure that people can fully experience Evanescent Field when we unveil it. We are not unveiling it until it gets dark out, so come early. We'll have food trucks, we'll have refreshments available, like I said, all the entertainment. It'll just be a wonderful block party for us as a community, and then Leo Villarreal himself will be there as the sun is setting.
Speaker 4:We're going to I don't know if it's actually flipping a switch. It might be a button. From what I've been hearing from his team, it's probably more likely a button, but we will make sure that we're celebrating all together as we officially unveil Evanescent Field. And that's not the end of the party. So we'll continue to have music and entertainment after that happens. That'll probably happen. I think the sunset's. What did we say 817. So by the time we get to maybe 845, it'll be dark enough for us to do this. Of course, we'll want to make sure that we can thank all of the people who have made this happen, and you know from the state of Iowa and all of their support to local support within the community and many, many donors. So we're excited to celebrate with everyone. There also will be other opportunities for you to see this because, while we won't have blow up every single night, we will be turning it on every single night. So we're you know the party will continue in its own way as people get to know the sculpture.
Speaker 3:So now we're going to pull up the rendering of Evanescent Field. So if one of you wouldn't mind highlighting what are the, what are the points here that we're seeing, what should people be looking for and what has gone into this hard work?
Speaker 1:So within Evanescent Field, you know the building was always designed by Sir David Chipperfield with the intention of using this double layer of glass that encompasses the entire building as an opportunity for light, as an opportunity to illuminate the entire facade. And you know David Chipperfield when we look back at kind of early interviews when he was talking about what he wanted to do with the architecture of this you know phenomenal building, he was talking about having this again be a beacon, be a gathering place, be this really kind of iconic structure for the community. And this light sculpture Evanescent Field with Leo Villareal kind of furthers David Chipperfield's goal. And this light sculpture Evanescent Field with Leo Villareal kind of furthers David Chipperfield's goal. And the architect Chipperfield is very enthusiastic about Leo Villareal's intervention here and they've worked on projects together in the past. He worked on a corporate center in Seoul, korea, with Leo Villareal as well. So their kind of architecture and art go kind of together very smoothly.
Speaker 1:But what we'll actually be seeing within the building itself there's over 3,000 feet of programmable LED lights that have been strung throughout what we refer to as the curtain wall, that space between the double panes of glass that encompass the entire building, and all of these are almost infinitely programmable. You can control each individual light that occurs along these expanses and control them with thousands of different colors. So Leo Villarreal is creating some site-specific programming in response to our community, in response to the river, in response to the building itself and the people visiting it and being able to actually react to what he is seeing and then being able to program these lights and their movement and their timing and their sequencing in such a way that they're responding to this community. It should be mentioned, too, that this sequencing will never really repeat itself. There are individual kind of vignettes or compositions that he's making that will repeat, but their duration or when they appear in the sequence will never repeat, ever.
Speaker 1:Um, and so it's this amazing, beautifully uh lit sculpture that is going to become this kind of gathering point or a digital campfire is how Leo often refers to them, and that really indicates his mission to use these as a gathering place. It's interesting because he often talks about LEDs being this language of consumer culture. Right, when we experience LEDs and lights like this, oftentimes it's in places like Times Square, where they're being used to kind of, you know, attract us like moths to the flame to go and purchase something of technology to kind of bring people together and appreciate this kind of immersive aesthetic experience and bring us together in a very, you know, different way than how they're typically used in commerce. So we're excited about what this is going to do for the community.
Speaker 1:And I should mention too, you know these renderings are wonderful, but this is only kind of a almost a sketch of what the ultimate design will be. He's coming in person, as I mentioned, to program this, and so he'll be able to basically sit outside with his laptop individually controlling these different light spans and respond to things. So we're talking about it, but we really haven't seen it yet. So we're talking about an artwork that there's been tons of preparations for years of work. Leo's been visiting the museum on and off for 10 years, but we haven't seen the final result. So we're excited to see what's to come. Melissa, did I miss anything?
Speaker 4:No, I think that's great, josh, and I also am glad that you pointed out that the piece itself has not actually been created yet.
Speaker 4:So, like Joshua said, what we're looking at with the rendering here and what you can find on the Figge's YouTube channel as well, this is all.
Speaker 4:It is just that it's a rendering. So the whole piece will be authored in the coming weeks, now that the fixed years are in place and we're finalizing testing on them, and we're really excited. So when everyone is there with us at Glow Up on May 17th, we will be experiencing it for the first time, the same way as everyone in our community, and we're really excited to share that share in that moment with the community. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be there at the moment where the piece is revealed. Yes, it will continue every night as we move forward, but it's about this moment of sharing together and and being grateful for all of the gifts that have come before, all the generosity that has helped us get here, and then being excited, getting excited about what's coming next in the next 100 years for the museum or community, and then looking beyond that even thank you guys for pulling this visual up, and so, if you are listening to the audio version of this podcast, melissa said this video is available on the figgies youtube channel.
Speaker 3:I also have the podcast link on youtube in the description, so go ahead and like pop over to that so that you can follow along while Josh and Melissa talk through this really, really gorgeous creation, and that is the fascinating part. So you know it's like you said it's, it's being authored. It is not yet done, it is something that is but a future cast of what will be, and it's really cool that we have this kind of sneak peek because you know that's modern art for you, you know that's a modern take on what we can create. You know as an artist or you know as the Quad Cities, a destination, and so you know you get to see it kind of being built behind the scenes in real time. But when we get together on May 17th to see it all unveiled, that really will be a beautiful community moment. Josh, you mentioned the word beacon. I think that that's absolutely, absolutely accurate.
Speaker 3:To steal a statement from Kyle Carter with Downtown Davenport Partnership.
Speaker 3:You know he said, I think during one of the initial announcements about this, that this, you know, this image will be the postcard, you know, for the Quad Cities going forward.
Speaker 3:This is going to be that visual that people want to share with their friends, their family, out of town, something a memento like hey, I visited here and I saw this and this was really incredible. And so, you know, the Iowa Economic Development Authority obviously put great support and investment into this and this is a part of a larger, you know, davenport improvement project, and so we're so excited as, like a destination marketing organization, to be able to tout this going forward and to have all of us be part of this huge event coming up in just a couple of weeks is really, really exciting. So is there anything that, on the construct side, that you know is happening behind the scenes that you guys are kind of having to work around? Or you know, when people come in to the museum right now, say, hey, you can take a sneak peek at you know such and such going on, what kinds of things are people seeing right now?
Speaker 4:I think that. So, yes, there's the answer to that. Anytime you take on a massive infrastructure project like this, especially in a building that is new but now 20 years old, there are things that come up that we've been really fortunate enough to be able to address on the front end. One example is that visitors to the museum and in the recent weeks, past month, will have probably noticed a lot of activity and construction in the curtain wall, especially on the first floor. One of the things that we realized was very important to the success of this project moving forward was to ensure that we had proper waterproofing and weatherproofing in the curtain wall. The lights, of course, the fixtures are graded for outdoors and we do have proper containment in the curtain wall, but just a precaution to make sure that while we're in there and kind of, you know, getting dirty, while we're setting this up, we're also doing everything we can to protect it moving forward, so that we can preserve it for the long term.
Speaker 4:People will also see these fixtures. Um, I think that they're. If you're not, I'm looking over to the side because I'm actually looking at them at my office window. Um, it'll be really fun for people who listen to this podcast or watch it or hear about the field and some other way to come. And now look for these fixtures during the daytime. They won't be lit until the sun comes down, but people can actually see how this is happening, the mechanism behind it and, like I said, we've been very fortunate to have so many talented people working with us um, through construction, engineering, like everything, just to make sure that when the artistic team featuring, of course, leo Villarreal arrives, everything is ready to go in the way it needs to be so that Leo can come in and author this piece from his heart.
Speaker 4:So, yeah, it's been an adventure. I'm newer to this position. I've been with the museum for over 15 years now, but really came into this leadership position within the past six months, and so there have been a lot of new vocabulary words that I'm learning around. This type of artwork and I think that that's one of the things that's so exciting elicits a response from you, an emotional response, and so it can involve fixtures and pixels and you know talking about waterproofing and weatherproofing and a curtain wall, like. All of this comes together to get to a creative moment, and I think that that's really fun and hopefully, people in the community feel the same way, like it's accessible in a different way, because it's not traditionally what you might consider art to be.
Speaker 3:Melissa, where does your love for art come from?
Speaker 4:You know I'm very lucky. My parents are artists, and so I grew up I never. Art has always been a part of my life, even before I realized what it was. Obviously, you know, most kids grow up drawing before they are writing and reading. We are visual by nature and I feel like that was really supported and encouraged in my home from the beginning. Now, of course, because my parents were artists when I was a teenager, I didn't want to do what they did, and so I pushed away from that and thought I would go down a different track that was more historical. But everything comes full circle when you just let yourself be authentic and true. So I did end up back in the art world and obviously in the museum world, but I grew up going to museums, so I have a fondness for them.
Speaker 1:Yeah, Joshua, how about you? Where does your art trajectory come from? Decent portion of my youth visiting the, you know, the local museums the Davenport Museum of Art, the Putnam, the Family Museum and just exhausting any of the art resources there and any of the art faculty. And then my educational background was initially in studio art and then, you know, got into the museums and galleries and history side of things a little bit later. So a not very kind of linear path but one that I, you know I've loved the whole time.
Speaker 3:Do you, would you say you have a career highlight at this point.
Speaker 1:A career in terms of, like my work within the music.
Speaker 3:Well, a favorite, favorite moment.
Speaker 1:I would say several of the exhibitions we've worked on have been truly wonderful. A Mia Foyer exhibition back in I think 2018 now gosh, I can't remember where we had a skatable hockey rink within the museum was pretty extraordinary. It was one of the first exhibitions I really helped to bring in and I love those kind of immersive experiences and you know Evanescent Field is going to be very similar to that and that you know it's not an artwork you view on a wall, it's one that you kind of live in.
Speaker 3:I love that. Wow, melissa. I have to ask you the same. Do you have a highlight or a favorite, a favorite moment? You know in your years to where you've gotten to today?
Speaker 4:I do, I have, I have two, one that is more. Um, yeah, I have two of them, so I'll share both. Uh, one is the opening reception for an exhibition we did called artists. First, and this was where we really worked with our local artists community to make sure that we were celebrating all that they were doing, especially those who are teaching artists. We do a series of exhibitions that are around they are around students, and we focus on the students and the talent and creativity that is being fostered in classrooms at all levels.
Speaker 4:But we at that point this was many years ago we had not truly celebrated all of those who helped them get there, you know, the, the art, the teaching artists behind the scenes, and so that was a really.
Speaker 4:It was like being in a gallery packed with so much creativity, being hugged by creativity, really, and an excitement and hope for what was to come next. So that was a pretty powerful moment for me at the museum. But more recently and this is kind of nerdy, I guess, but I really have so enjoyed the quiet moments with our staff where we're talking about strategic planning or we're talking about these little things that are working fine but could be working better with just a little adjustment here and there. It's just, having been on the team for so long and knowing fully what the challenges are, it's been just heartwarming to work with our team in these quiet moments and to see the small changes happening that are going to help us, help set us up for what comes in the future. So I know it's it's not a flashy answer, but it's also something that I really. I value those moments as much as I do the big celebratory moments, because one helps us get to the other.
Speaker 3:Yeah, it's those progress moments. You know it's in, in the physical world. It's like you know the, the construction and the laying of evanescent field right now. And then you know, in the more abstract world, it's those moments with your team, with your staff, where you're having those conversations and you're just laying the progress work to something big to come. So I completely resonate with that, 100%. And Melissa, correct me if I'm wrong you're not originally from the Quad Cities, correct?
Speaker 4:You are correct, I'm originally from the St Louis area, so St Louis of course has a thriving art scene and I spent many, many days in the St Louis Art Museum just sketching and dreaming. So I think that that kind of connects back with what you asked about my foundation in arts. So I think that that kind of connects back with what you asked about my foundation in arts. After that I went to college and studied classics. Thinking revolve around these works and with these works to make a better future. That really inspired me and so I came back and switched gears from the more historical language-based track to an art historical track where I could focus on a visual culture. I went to grad school for that ended up working for the museum at. I was at the University of Iowa so I worked for the Stanley Museum of Art and ended up getting recruited over at the Figge.
Speaker 4:So it's been a really. You know, josh talked about a linear path. Mine has been maybe slightly more linear, but also I bounced around. I feel like it's been reactive to who I was at that moment and what the environment was, and for me it's always really important to make sure that what I have to give is um is being given to what the place at the moment needs, that it's a good match so that it can be true Um. And that that's how I felt. When the Figge offered me a position of executive director at the museum last year, it was really. I felt good about it through and through because I knew that they knew the work that I could be doing here and recognized that it was a match for what the museum needed at that moment. So I think I've been very fortunate in this path, as twisty as it has been from time to time.
Speaker 3:The twists and turns make the best stories and memories, though. So, Josh, are you a Quad citizen from birth.
Speaker 1:I've never heard that term before I like that I, yes, I lived in. I was born in Port Byron, so about 30 minutes up river, as anyone in this community would probably say. That's how we judge time and space is by the river. But then, you know, moved all around, did undergrad near Chicago and then graduate school in Washington DC and then came back here and did some additional grad school actually had Melissa as an instructor, which was wonderful. Came back here and did some additional grad school. I actually had Melissa as an instructor, which was wonderful. So it's been kind of all over. And then I was so glad to, you know, come back home and then get a job in my kind of hometown museum. And you know, I remember, like I said, coming to the Davenport Museum of Art and seeing some of the paintings that are now kind of in my charge on the walls and appreciating them then, and so to get to now work with them in a more intimate way is truly wonderful.
Speaker 3:So really putting you guys on the spot here. So feel free to dodge the question. We are at 100 years of the figgy. What will 100 more years bring to the figgy?
Speaker 4:That's a very good question and one that we've been talking about here. When we talk about it, it's not in exact terms, it's more about a feeling. So what does the figgy in our community feel like 100 years from now? And it is a figgy that people feel like is theirs, that they have ownership of it, that they belong in it, and not just, oh, we're free today, so we've provided access, but more like we want more and more community members to be co-creating with us every day as we move forward. So truly feeling like they are part, like woven into the fabric of what the museum is.
Speaker 4:I think that we've done some of that, but there's more that we can continue to do, always in that regard. So, thinking about 100 years from now, it's a museum that is truly of the community and for the community, and there are many more words that we've talked about as a team just what that feels like. Michashua, I don't know if you have a different answer to this. I know this is kind of a higher level, you know, talking about the feelings, but then individuals may have very specific things that they feel the figgy should be in the next hundred years. So I'll pass the torch to you in case you have anything you want to add.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean the thing that I would add is, I guess, a little bit more in terms of art specific.
Speaker 1:You know, looking at, you know we have a fairly modest collection.
Speaker 1:We have about, you know, 6,000 plus objects within the collection and you know we do these around 14 to 17 exhibitions a year roughly, depending on how you're counting, and I think it's important that, as we go forward, the collection and the exhibitions continue to grow with, you know, the world in which we live. You know, further embrace the full range of diversity, embrace the's obviously a very large artwork, but also, you know, embracing more thoroughly video art. You know, prior to this year we only had about six pieces within the collection that could be deemed video, and now you know we're continuing to add to that in a much more kind of planned and strategic way. And also just further embracing, you know, arts by LGBTQ artists, women artists, artists from all sorts of different backgrounds that had been previously kind of underrepresented in the collection. So I know that's kind of a more targeted thing than the kind of more global scope, but I do think it's an important facet of how this institution will continue to kind of grow and change.
Speaker 4:Yeah, I'm glad you brought that up, joshua. That's also a conversation we've been having pretty regularly and making sure that we are supporting that on the back end by providing resource so that we can move forward in these ways. Just prioritizing that as a team has been really important. I'd also say, you know, another theme that comes up is advocacy. So in 100 years and hopefully it won't take a full 100 years, but it would be like I dream of a place, a community and even a state or a region where we don't have to ask people to advocate for us. They wouldn't even think to not do it because we are so important to them and they are so important to us. You know it's we're interconnected. So that's kind of the the ultimate goal creating this, cultivating a culture of museum advocacy, of creative advocacy, so that it's never I mean, we're not, we're not facing funding cuts the way so many of our dear partners are right now, but it's not even a question that people wouldn't jump in and help, because we have that culture here in our community.
Speaker 3:Good points on that and I think you know, as the decades go on, as the years go on, the Quad Cities does become a more inclusive community. You know, part of our belonging statement at Visit Quad Cities is, you know, our work is to foster a place where everybody can thrive and feel that they belong and know that they belong, and you know so, yes, having arts that represent that and then having, you know, the support of the community going forward that recognizes that the figgy, you know, values these things and is an invaluable asset that we have to protect and keep going. So I see good things for the next 100 years of the figgy. May 17th is the day Evanescent Field comes to life and I just I want to rewind a smidge.
Speaker 3:Earlier in this podcast, josh, you said 3,000 feet of LED lighting. That's over a half a mile and I can't wrap my head around that, but I hope somebody else can. That's huge, that's wild and I really am having a hard time getting my arms around that. That's just such a big project and I'm so wowed by the fact that there's an artist out there and a team who can make that happen, that you all have embraced such a huge project and it's going to be an asset for generations to come. So I'm just I'm thrilled for you guys. Congratulations big time and thank you for the insight on this podcast, letting us kind of take a sneak peek at these renderings which have been out there, and I think this whole community is just really buzzing for Glow Up. So thank you guys so much.
Speaker 3:The Figgy is really really good about hosting events throughout the year and keeping VisitQuestCitiescom events calendar up to date with what you guys have going on. So that's a really easy way that everyone listening can experience, you know, kind of special events going on with Figgy and obviously if you're listening past May 17th, it is here, it is live, so go check it out. Per tradition on this podcast, I would love to throw it back to you guys and have you each fill in the blank QC, that's where. So, josh, would you like to go first with your QC? That's where? Statement.
Speaker 1:Sure QC. That's where creativity calls home.
Speaker 3:Perfect Melissa. What is yours?
Speaker 4:Oh gosh, that was really good. Jeez, I was going to say QC, that's where, all in a day, you can be outdoors exploring in so many ways, indoors learning in so many ways. And QC, that's where you see friends and you meet new friends on an ongoing basis. It's just QC, that's where it is truly home.
Speaker 3:Thank you both so, so much. I love both of those, all of those. We may snag them for some of our social media. So again, thank you, Really appreciate your time. And May 17th mark your calendars and again, if it's already happened, we're here. So thank you guys.
Speaker 4:Thank you, Katrina. Thank you for being such a great partner. Visit Quad Cities. We would not be where we are without you and without your team. Thank you for all the good work you do to move us forward.
Speaker 3:That means a lot, really really appreciate that, appreciate what you guys do.
Speaker 2:Thanks for listening to QC. That's when a podcast powered by visit quad cities text visit QC to three, eight, three, one, four for insider events, activities and updates sent straight to your phone. That's V I, s, I T QC. One word to three, eight, three, one, four. Message and data rates may apply.
