Public Art Review; Spring-Summer 2003

THE ELECTRIC FIELDS Of CALIFORNIA by Debby and Larry Kline consists of five installations stretching across California from the U.S./Mexico border to Sacramento.   Ambient electrical fields beneath high-voltage power lines illuminate fluorescent bulbs with direct electrical connections.   The work addresses responsible use of electricity.   Each site will be installed for six months.   An exhibition of photographs of the project ran at TRES Studio and Gallery in November 2002.  The project was funded by the Gunk Foundation in New York.

Public Art Review; Fall-Winter 2003

CORRECTION
The Last issue of Public Art Review reported on a recent project by Debby and Larry Kline, THE ELECTRIC LIGHT FIELDS OF CALIFORNIA, which consists of a series of outdoor light sculptures beneath high-voltage power lines in various locations throughout the state.The description of the Klines’ project mistakenly implied that the sculptures’ fluorescent light bulbs are powered by connections to the power lines. However, a clarification fiom the artists makes it clear that the sculptures are illuminated by the ambient electromagnetic fields created by the power fines, without any direct connection to the lines themselves. Indeed, the power fines generate electrical fields strong enough to excite the plasma in the fluorescent bulbs without the need for a wired connection.  As such, the sculpture makes an environmental as well as an artistic statement.  Long-term exposure to electromagnetic fields has been  suggested as a cancer risk, and this artwork  is a visual demonstration of such fields’ power.  The artists have completed three of five planned installations – in Kettleman City, Ontario, and Niland, California.