Clean Energy Art Garden Launches at the Bakken Museum

The Bakken, Minneapolis’ museum of Electricity in Life, is devoted to educating the public about the role of electricity in our lives. Their exhibits cover every aspect of electricity from our own brain function to the inner workings or our televisions. Since its founding in the 1970s the mission has been to “inspire a passion for science and its potential for social good by helping people explore the history and nature of electricity and magnetism.” Through their most recent project the Bakken seeks to convey new and innovative means of generating electricity to demonstrate for its visitors the value of sustainable, renewable and alternative energy sources.

In December of 2009 the Bakken was awarded a grant of $2,500 from Metro CERT to conduct a feasibility study for their newest exhibit on renewable energy. The exhibit’s Master Plan envisioned a series of stations throughout the Bakken building and grounds that showcase practical and aesthetic applications of sustainable electric power.

As a preliminary piece of this larger exhibit, the museum wanted to install a Green Energy sculpture garden on their grounds. The grant project focused on a feasibility study for solar-powered art stations as a priority component of the overall Green Energy exhibit concept. They decided to start with a few smaller, temporary pieces before taking on a large project with all of its expenses and liabilities. This will serve as a test run to inform the larger-scale, more permanent future displays.

Forecast Public Art was chosen for this portion of the feasibility due to their specialized expertise in developing public art projects. A site assessment conducted by Powerfully Green concluded that solar power is more readily available and practical for the Bakken than wind power. The sunniest site is the rooftop terrace, an otherwise underused outdoor area featuring skylights which provide passive lighting to the exhibit halls below and a view of Lake Calhoun.

Using the terrace as the site for outdoor solar energy exhibit was a way for the museum to integrate information about renewable energy with plans to provide interpretation about all the outdoor areas and their environmental benefits.

This feasibility study was the first step towards the proposed Green Energy Sculpture Garden exhibit which will use solar cell technology and other renewable energy sources to power beautiful and evocative kinetic art demonstrating the power of these technologies to be visually appealing as well as a healthy and sustainable source of energy.

The Bakken hopes to use art to bring technologies to the forefront of visitors’ attention; inspiring them to rethink their assumptions about renewable energy’s potential, application and aesthetic.

For example, it is a common misconception that solar does not work well in cold climates such as Minnesota when in fact solar photovoltaic (PV) systems actually work better in the cold because the materials work more efficiently when cool.

With panels becoming more flexible, mobile, resilient, and convenient the possibilities for artistic use and display are numerous. Bakken sought kinetic (moving) sculptures and other passive forms of solar usage to make the power of the sun more immediately tangible to their visitors. The final project was envisioned as a progression through the museum and grounds that moves through the history of uses of solar and other renewables, from passive to cutting edge modern developments. Sculptures could be placed in garden plots that feature prairie plants as a source of biofuel or they may use wind or muscle power to supplement solar in an electro-kinetic sculpture.

A Community Advisory Committee was formed in the fall of 2010 as the next step to gain input on community needs for the educational context supporting the art installations. The Bakken Museum worked to identify potential funders for the summer 2011 demonstration project. The plan is for a long term exhibit that will reach the surrounding community and visitors to the Bakken Museum, whose audience currently numbers about 45,000 per year. They also hope to draw more attention to the Bakken with eye-catching displays on their grounds that will draw new visitors in from the street.

The final array of Green Stations as envisioned would vary from the practical to the artistic in showcasing renewable energy applications. Each will include interpretation to help visitors understand the science behind “green energy”.

The feasibility study for the solar energy sculpture garden from Forecast Public Art recommended commissioning up to six temporary, interactive, modestly-scaled art exhibits that utilize some form of renewable energy. Artists were encouraged to link educational or participatory activities to their sculptures, and to seek technical assistance and resources from partner organizations.

The Green Energy Art Garden exhibit was unveiled in July of 2011 as part of the 10 Best Days of the Bakken, the museum’s annual celebration of summer that coincides with the Minneapolis Aquatennial and features special activities and events each day. The exhibit features four large, whimsical sculptures powered by renewable energy from sun, wind or water. Each sculpture is an original creation of a local artist, in conjunction with scientists, inventors and engineers working in the field of renewable energy. Four artists, or teams of artists, were selected from nearly two dozen submissions to create pieces for the exhibit.

To further include the community the Bakken shared a summary of the feasibility study as well as a description of the exhibit on their website for other nonprofit agencies interested in renewable energy. Visitors are also currently invited to participate in the Minnesota Energy Challenge as part of an Xcel Energy interactive display in the museum. The community is welcomed to contribute to the discussion as the Bakken continues to analyze how to best meet potential stakeholders’ wishes in this new renewable energy initiative.

For more information about the Bakken Museum Green Energy Art Garden, contact Kelly Finnerty, Deputy Director for Programs at 612-926-3878 ext. 215 or email finnerty@thebakken.org. You can also visit the Bakken website: http://www.thebakken.org.