VISUAL ARTS + MUSEUMS

Coming to Houston this fall, the Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet exhibit will display 50 artistically decorated, super-sized globes that depict simple solutions to global warming and educate individuals and companies about how they can partake in making their city and homes a greener place to live. The free, outdoor public art exhibit opens October 9, 2009 at Houston’s Discovery Green, 1500 McKinney St.

The five-foot diameter, seven-foot-tall globes, each weighing in at 2,300 pounds, have been designed by international and national artists such as Peter Mars, Bernard Williams and Mr. Imagination as well as Houston artists including Sharon Kopriva, Suzanne Sellers and Liz Conces Spenser.

“Partnering with the Cool Globes organization is another example of Houston’s effort to educate citizens about ways to reduce their energy consumption, recycle and improve air quality,” said Mayor Bill White. “Using public art to educate Houstonians about global warming—its impact and its solutions—builds a network that spans all ages and cultures.”

Featuring public art with a purpose, Cool Globes was inspired by Chicago-area environmental activist and mother of four Wendy Abrams who wanted to do something to showcase what people can do to help combat global warming. The project, encouraged in part by the Cows on Parade exhibit, grew out of a commitment Abrams offered up while attending a 2005 conference held by the Clinton Global Initiative.

“To most of us, the problem of global warming is overwhelming,” said Wendy Abrams, founder, Cool Globes. “We feel helpless and are not convinced that the small efforts we make to address climate change could really have an impact. However, there are solutions and simple actions we all can take in our daily lives to help reduce climate change. We can find something in this exhibit that we can change in our own lives.”

Cool Globes is coming to Houston prior to debuting in Europe in 2010. Cool Globes premiered in 2007 in Chicago, where the exhibit became a “must see” destination for millions of visitors to the city’s Museum Campus along the lakefront. In 2008 Cool Globes traveled to Washington D.C. and was on display at the U.S. Botanic Garden. The globes then moved to Crissy Field in San Francisco and next to San Diego’s Balboa Park. In 2009, prior to the globes coming to Houston, they were on view in Los Angeles’ Exposition Park.

The Cool Globes: Hot Ideas for a Cooler Planet exhibit is being presented by Reliant Energy. H-E-B is the Education Sponsor and Calpine Corporation is the Opening Reception Sponsor. Foundation Sponsors include: Greater Houston Community Foundation; Houston Arts Alliance; Houston Endowment Inc; The Brown Foundation, Inc. The Premiere Globe Sponsors are Silver Eagle Distributors and Vestas R&D Americas. Globe sponsors include: AshBritt; Corporate Care; Dancie Perugini Ware Public Relations; Schneider Electric. In-Kind Sponsors are City of Houston; Discovery Green; FedEx; The Four Seasons Hotel; Greenworks; Houston Chronicle; HoustonPBS; Medline Industries; Papercity Magazine; The Grove; The Tagos Group.

The public is invited to the grand opening celebration of Cool Globes on Friday, October 9th from 10:00 am until 1:00 pm at Discovery Green. Refreshments courtesy of H-E-B will be provided.

The outdoor exhibit is offered free to the public and will remain open through December 31.

For more information, visit www.coolglobes.com.

Pictured above: We Are What We Eat by Nicholas Kashian.  Photos (above and below) courtesy of Cool Globes, Inc.