NBA basketball team the Golden State Warriors have provided an in-depth look into their new Chase Center home, ahead of the arena’s official opening next month.
Chase Center, which will have a capacity of 18,064, is due to open with a Metallica concert on September 6 before the Warriors play their first pre-season game at the venue against the Los Angeles Lakers on October 5.
The Warriors will move from the Oracle Arena in Oakland, their home since 1971, to the new arena which has been privately developed in Mission Bay, San Francisco at a cost of $1.4bn (£1.15bn/€1.26bn). The Warriors lifted the lid on Chase Center during a media day which also saw the unveiling of a new installation by Danish-Icelandic artist Olafur Eliasson.
‘Seeing spheres’ is Eliasson’s largest public artwork in the United States, and has been located at Chase Center’s 25,000 square foot triangular plaza in front of the East Entrance to the arena. The installation consists of five 15-and-a-half-foot-tall polished hydroformed steel spheres that stand in a circle around a central space. Each sphere supports a flat, circular mirrored face, framed by a ring of LED lights, which is oriented inward to reflect the mirrored faces of the surrounding spheres.
“Eliasson’s global reputation for innovation and creativity is now on full display in San Francisco,” said Warriors president and chief operating officer Rick Welts. “Seeing spheres will be an instant must-see for Bay Area residents and a magnet for visitors from around the world.”
Dorka Keehn, project public art consultant, added: “Working with a multi-million-dollar budget and a client with a vision of building community, I knew that Olafur was the perfect artist for the new home of the Warriors and was thrilled when the owners selected him.
“The Warriors and Chase Center have gifted San Francisco with an exceptional work of art by a world-renowned artist, who has a strong connection to San Francisco. Seeing spheres is a destination piece, a work that reflects the soul of the new neighbourhood, and the ideal example of San Francisco’s ‘1%-for-art program’ enhancing and enlivening our city in tandem with our urban growth.”
Images: Chase Center
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