SIGNATURE INTERACTIVE ART PIECE IS HIGHLIGHT OF GREATER COLUMBUS CONVENTION CENTER GRAND OPENING CELEBRATION COMMEMORATING $140 MILLION EXPANSION AND RENOVATION

 

(Columbus, August 31, 2017)  — The reveal of “As We Are,” an interactive art piece by Columbus College of Art & Design’s Matthew Mohr, is the highlight of the SMG-managed Greater Columbus Convention Center’s (GCCC) Grand Reopening Celebration tonight.

A 14-foot, 3-D universal human head sculpture made from ribbons of ultra-bright LED screens, the piece contains a photo booth capable of shooting 3-D pictures. After each photo shoot, the guest emerges from the booth to see his or her portrait depicted as the face of “As We Are.”

“Each portrait is roughly 17 times the size of the person represented,” said Mohr. “Eyes are as big as dinner plates. Through magnification, the sculpture recontextualizes each participant and asks all who see their portrait to consider who that person is and the life they lead, no matter their age, gender or culture. Portraits rotate continually, fading one into another to provide a rolling landscape of human diversity.”

The sculpture was fabricated by Boston’s Design Communications Ltd. and commissioned by the GCCC owners, the Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority (FCCFA), to become the signature piece in the largest contemporary collection of central Ohio art. The FCCFA has invested $3.5 million and displays nearly 400 pieces of art throughout its properties.

Mohr said he sought to “reconsider oneself in a unique context, to consider that representation in a public setting, and to recontextualize people from different cultures and backgrounds” through this piece.

“We are looking forward to ‘As We Are’ becoming a destination and iconic image identified with our facility and Columbus and a point of pride for both visitors and residents,” said GCCC General Manager John R. Page.

In addition to “As We Are,” the GCCC now offers:

  • 1.8 million square feet
  • 373,000 square feet of contiguous exhibit space and 447,000 overall
  • 114,000 square feet of ballroom space, with 25,000-square-foot Union Station Ballroom, 15,000-square-foot Short North Ballroom and 74,000-square-foot Battelle Grand
  • 75 meeting rooms comprising about 118,000 square feet
  • 9 new meeting rooms with windows facing outside
  • 4 parking facilities with 4,000 onsite parking spaces
  • Spacious atriums with elegant flooring
  • Arnold Plaza featuring 10,000 square feet of event space with tent
  • Upper-level show management offices overlooking exhibit halls
  • Decorative lighting and colorful node walls in the concourse
  • Digital meeting room signage
  • 35 loading docks
  • South Café & Marketplace featuring quick-service dining, specialty shops and services
  • Two Guest Services Centers
  • Free-standing nursing mother’s room
  • Shoe-shine services
  • Energy-saving fixtures in remodeled restrooms and LED lighting in exhibit halls
  • Collaboration spaces in cafés, throughout the main concourse and beneath node walls
  • Internet capabilities via Smart City include accommodating 20,000 simultaneous users
  • Levy’s Discovery Cafe featuring local cuisine and beverages within the Homegrown Café, Columbus Grille, CBUS Tap Room and Crimson Cup Coffee & Tea. The indoor Smartfarm — the first of its kind in a convention center — produces nearly 5,000 pounds of vegetables and herbs annually for culinary use that can be grown in advance to accommodate event planner requests
  • The Live at Lunch series provides local entertainment the first Thursday of each month
  • The city’s largest contingent of Certified Tourism Ambassadors