Jenny Holzer, Carrie Mae Weems among artists joining Orange Barrel Media for ‘Art in Action’

Orange Barrel Media (OBM) debuted Art for Action, an artist-driven, non-partisan voter call to action and awareness campaign appearing nationwide across its network of digital billboards and IKE Smart City kiosks in advance of the 2020 United States November election. In partnership with artists and the Wexner Center for the Arts, Art for Action features original works by Jenny Holzer, Carrie Mae Weems, Jeffrey Gibson, and Tomashi Jackson, among others.

The campaign includes voter resources, links, and individual state-specific registration and voting deadlines in sixteen cities across the US, on view through election day on November 3, 2020.

The largest and most geographically diverse effort of its kind, Art for Action appears on a total of 350 large format digital screens and IKE Smart City kiosks in Washington, DC; Los Angeles; Boston; Atlanta; Denver; Cleveland; Charlotte, North Carolina; St. Louis; Pittsburgh; Baltimore; San Antonio; Kansas City, Missouri; Columbus, Ohio; Tempe, Arizona; Norfolk, Virginia; and Coral Gables, Florida. The campaign is projected to reach a daily audience of 3.34 million and a total audience of more than 106.7 million adults throughout its run, with messages appearing approximately one time in each minute-long content rotation.

(Carrie Mae Weems. Courtesy of Orange Barrel Media.)

In addition to the artwork components of Art for Action, the campaign developed by OBM displays voter information and individualized registration and voting deadlines for each state. IKE’s software platform and intuitive design allows pedestrians to approach street-level kiosks and use touch screen capabilities to access online and in-person deadlines, and through a QR code handoff, allow pedestrians to register to vote. A real-time countdown clock powered by software developed by IKE Smart City conveys key dates and creates a sense of urgency to engage.

“From the beginning, we have been focused on partnering with the cities we serve, leveraging our powerful platform to improve mobility, equity, and citizen engagement,” Orange Barrel Media CEO, Pete Scantland said. “What better opportunity than this historic election to partner with artists to encourage a dialogue on citizen engagement and to broadcast information and resources to encourage higher voter participation, particularly in many of the states that will determine the outcome of the election.”

The artist-driven component of the effort was initiated by Jenny Holzer, long known for her work utilizing digital signage in the public space. Inspired to share new work from her project YOU VOTE developed for the election, she reached out to OBM. Holzer had previously collaborated with OBM on projects that debuted on OBM’s IKE kiosks and large format digital screens in 2019.

From there, the effort was broadened to include work by Carrie Mae Weems, Jeffrey Gibson, and Tomashi Jackson, who is currently featured in an exhibition at the Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, Ohio. Partnering with the Wexner Center for the Arts, these artists’ work will appear in all markets, and the museum and OBM have also commissioned seven additional artists to debut on screens in Columbus and Cleveland, Ohio.

The local Ohio project is curated by Dionne Custer Edwards, Director of Learning and Public Practice at the Wexner Center for the Arts, and the broader national project is curated by Diana Nawi for OBM

(Top: Tomashi Jackson. Bottom: Jeffrey Gibson. Courtesy of Orange Barrel Media.)

Key Facts and Figures

350 large-format digital and IKE Smart City screens in sixteen cities, delivering an average of 3.34 million daily 18+ impressions and 106.7 million impressions throughout the run.

ABOUT ORANGE BARREL MEDIA

Orange Barrel Media and sister company IKE Smart City, pioneer landmark media and smart city technology to improve lives in cities. Since its founding in 2004, Orange Barrel Media has been committed to a community-oriented model of media development and is now nationally recognized by cities and real estate owners alike seeking to implement programs that add to the vibrancy and character of urban places.

Orange Barrel Media operates urban media displays in 18 of the top US markets. Orange Barrel Media leveraged that expertise to develop sister company, IKE Smart City, which is blazing the way in smart city initiatives with its interactive digital kiosk, IKE, now launched in 8 cities and expanding nationwide. For more information, visit orangebarrelmedia.com and ikesmartcity.com