Downtown art installation to brighten Mellon Square with 'art, light and cheer'

By Samuel Long / Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

An upcoming art installation will transform Downtown Pittsburgh’s Mellon Square into a colorful holiday plaza in time for Highmark Light Up Night. 

The piece, called “Aurora,” will feature hundreds of diamond-shaped panels that change color as they shift, whether that be from a light breeze or a touch from viewers.

The panels will echo the terrazzo design of the park’s ground with an argyle pattern, which helps the diamonds come to life and appear as though they’re floating in the air. It will rise and dip, stretching over the square’s central fountain, waving through trees and reaching more over 25 feet high at its peak. 

Joshua Challen Ice, a sculptor known for transforming public spaces with art, created the the installation in partnership with Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. It’s set to debut on Nov. 23 during Highmark Light Up Night and remain through Jan. 15.

With support from The Benter Foundation and Eden Hall Foundation, “Aurora” will become Downtown’s “marquee” holiday attraction with “a unique blend of art, light and festive cheer,” according to Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy. 

Ice has a background in lighting design and entertainment technology, which helps him achieve immersive environments that connect people to the space around them. 

“Aurora transforms public space into a dynamic, interactive experience that invites people to engage directly with light and movement,” Ice said in a statement. 

“Public art is an opportunity to reshape the way we experience everyday environments, making the familiar feel new and unexpected.”