Kites

Jacob Hashimoto uses traditional kite-making techniques to create distinctive artworks that comprise thousands of individual elements strung together and suspended in space to form multi-layered fields of imagery.  His art combines the three-dimensional qualities of sculpture, such as volume and scale, with the flat, pictorial aspects of painting, operating as a hybrid of the two. 

Hashimoto created Kites specifically for the new east and anticipated west atria of the historic GSA headquarters building.  (The second half of the artwork will be installed upon completion of the west atrium.)  The sculpture is composed of approximately 2,000 polycarbonate and stainless steel elements, which the artist refers to as kites.  Hashimoto screen printed the diamond-shaped kites with a variety of abstract patterns and landscape imagery, which can suggest any number of associations—including the diversity, complexity, and interconnectedness of the critical work performed by GSA and the myriad other federal agencies that it serves.  Similarly, the artwork’s sky, water, and plant imagery highlights the importance of green practices in GSA’s mission.  This seemingly delicate yet monumental sculpture cascades through the light-filled atrium, offering viewers new experiences of the artwork and the surrounding architectural space from every vantage point.