The Hill
Overlooking the great lawn, the Hill features Moving Surfaces, a public art installation by Vancouver-based artist Jill Anholt. Composed from a series of steel shapes that bend and fold, Moving Surfaces' organic, fluid form is reminiscent of the flow of water itself. Light-emitting diodes, integrated into one face of the sculpture, project a dynamic video created from an in-depth study of the textures, patterns and reflections of water movement along the Rideau Canal. The Light-emitting diodes component of the sculpture is also programmable, enabling the curation of future digital installations by other artists, ensuring Moving Surfaces continual transformation over time.
In the most recent evolution of the sculpture artist Andrew O’Malley connects sky and water with his digital painting Northern Window. Northern Window interacts with the lighting of Moving Surfaces by creating sequences of patterns that evolve throughout the day with the movement of the sun and changes in the skies and weather patterns. At a glance the viewer may see the lighting as static, however a sensor on the sculpture records the current sky and updates the sequencing every minute to reflect the changes in light from sunrise to sunset, through clouds and starry skies alike.