LOS ANGELES, CA.- The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) commemorates the first anniversary of a permanent collection icon, Chris Burden’s Urban Light, with a digital exhibition of public photography, videography, and creative writing inspired by the sculpture, as well as a complement of additional electronic offerings.

Since joining LACMA’s collection in February 2008 thanks to the generosity of the Gordon Family Foundation, Urban Light, which consists of 202 vintage street lamps and is installed along the museum’s Wilshire Boulevard entrance, has quickly become a Los Angeles landmark. This coming February, one year after its installation at the museum, LACMA will host an online exhibition of the public’s Urban Light-inspired work, culled by curator of photography Charlotte Cotton. Selections will also be included in a commemorative print-on-demand book, with one winning photograph chosen for the cover.

The public is invited to participate in the celebration of Urban Light by submitting images and writing for consideration as well as participating in a host of online offerings. Discussions and background about the sculpture, a news archive, and submission updates are available via Urban Light’s Facebook fan page while LACMA’s Twitter account will provide followers with little-known details about the object. Posts on LACMA’s blog, Unframed, will also keep readers apprised of developments, including the announcement of the winning open call entrant. An Urban Light PDA tour, accessible on the work’s dedicated page at lacma.org, and also via free PDA rentals onsite, will be available in February. Finally, after the online presentation launches, LACMA’s wiki will provide a full recap of the celebration.

Charlotte Cotton, Head of the Wallis Annenberg Photography Department, noted, “Since the installation of Chris Burden’s Urban Light earlier this year, the site has become a night and day draw for photographers and videographers. Search ‘Urban Light’ on video and photography sites on the web, and you will see how the sculpture as both a site and physical form is inspiring contemporary image-makers. It was these very images that inspired our online presentation which has dovetailed perfectly with the museum’s desire to celebrate its rich permanent collection more broadly than ever before."

Photos can be submitted to www.flickr.com/groups/urbanlight, videos to
http://www.youtube.com/group/urbanlight, and writing submissions of 500 words or less can be sent to urbanlight@lacma.org. For access to additional media such as Facebook and Twitter, and to learn more about LACMA’s celebration of Urban Light, visit http://www.lacma.org/art/urbanlight.aspx.